My Jewel
by raindrop13
Summary: Katherine's best friend comes to town with her and meets the wonderful Damon Salvatore. T for cursing and implied themes. Slightly AU but mostly on target.
1. Chapter 1

(The only thing I own in this story is Jewel, and if CW wants her then she's all theirs )

Jewel POV

Katherine was walking up the drive to the Salvatores' house; I was resting comfortably on Katherine's shoulder in the form of a finch. She was muttering something about how ridiculous she was being and how the Salvatores would probably stake her, but I was more focused on their stunning house. It was gorgeous architecture and looked centuries old.

She knocked on the door, a massive wooden structure, and stepped back. Most people saw her as a heartless bitch, but I knew better. She broke her façade with me and showed me the truthful Katherine Pierce, the woman so badly wounded by her past that she steeled herself against the future at any price, even if that meant hurting others.

The door opened on Stefan, a boy I knew simply by Katherine's descriptions. Stefan looked curiously at me before motioning Katherine in. His gaze never left me as he followed her into what I assumed was the den. She nodded at everyone else. I searched the room until I found the girl who looked just like her, Elena.

I flitted over to her and landed on her shoulder, rubbing my cheek against her jaw. Elena gasped in surprise and nearly fell over before steadying herself on the back of a chair. Katherine laughed. "Chill. She's just demonstrating her approval, or saying hi or something. Get over here Jules," she said, holding her hand out for me to land on. I leapt into the air and gracefully came to a halt on her delicate forefinger.

"Katherine, might I inquire why you have a _bird_ with you?" the vampire named Damon asked. Katherine rolled her eyes.

"Because she's my best friend, Damon. She's a shape shifter who absolutely refused to change into a human this morning," she said with a pointed glare at me.

Damon eyed me suspiciously. "Well if she wants to stay here, she's going to have to be _human_ while she does it," I sighed as I jumped onto the couch before becoming human again.

"Happy?" I said with my arms crossed and a frown on my face. I didn't like being a human, even if it was the form that came most naturally. Being a bird was so freeing, and I adored flying. I enjoyed being other animals too, but birds were my favorite. They were so graceful and pretty, especially songbirds.

My dislike of this form probably had something to do with the clothes. They were irritable. When I changed, they changed into feathers or fur or something, but while I was human they were bulky and annoying. I was wearing dark skin-tight jeans, which were almost tolerable because they fit like a second skin, and a cerulean tank top that wasn't too awful.

"Very," he responded sarcastically. I rolled my eyes and turned my gaze to the stares of everyone else.

"What?" I asked. Katherine grinned.

"They've never seen a shape shifter before, idiot. I told you to change earlier," she smirked.

"That's not an 'I told you so' at all," I scoffed with a grin. She shrugged

"What are best friends for?"

"I'm still taken with the fact that Katherine has a friend," said Damon from the back. I grinned; he _so _set himself up for one of Katherine's rants. I decided to save him.

"Jealous?" I grinned at him innocently. He raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth to respond before a man cut him off.

"Since we haven't met, I'm Alaric. I take it you already know Damon, Stefan, and Elena thanks to Katherine. That's Caroline, and Tyler should be here any minute. Jeremy, Elena's brother, and Bonnie, a witch, should be here soon too," I smiled and shook his hand.

"You're the vampire slayer. Katherine mentioned you," I said cheerily. Katherine looked bored, eyeing everyone in the room contemptuously.

"Hey guys, sorry we're late!" rang a voice that reminded me of old bells. I turned to see a very pretty black woman and two boys, one noticeably bigger than the others. I assumed the girl was Bonnie and decided that the bigger boy with black hair was the wolf, based on Katherine's description. That left the smaller boy with messy brown hair to be Jeremy. I smiled at them.

Bonnie noticed me first. She whispered something to Elena who nodded. "Uh, this is… Jewel, right?" she said, looking at me and Katherine for approval. Katherine was screwing with her nails so I nodded.

"You can call me pretty much anything. Except for you, Damon, because I have a suspicion you'll abuse that. Jewel works, or Jules. I'm going by Julianne right now, so that's less conspicuous," I said. Damon looked up at his name.

"Hey! You don't even know me!" he cried out indignantly.

"Actually I kinda do," I said nodding at Katherine.

"Sorry, I may have mentioned that you're a degrading womanizer," she said with an innocent smile.

"Did you also mention that you sleep with more men than a prostitute?" he growled. Stefan and Elena looked at him in surprise. Katarina sat up straight in shock.

"At least I don't have to compel them!"

"I don't compel women to sleep with me, but you might!"

Now was around the time she'd begin to say something truly regrettable, so I cut her off. "Katarina Petrova and Damon Salvatore shut the hell up and be civil!" I yelled so loudly that everyone in the room was immediately quiet.

Katherine glared at me. Katherine sat back and sank into her chair with a final glare at Damon. Damon didn't hesitate to return it, but I caught him glancing at me with… regret?

"Why are you here again?" asked Jeremy. Elena told them about my ability.

"Are you like a werewolf?" asked Tyler hopefully. I frowned.

"Kinda, but not really. I can change whenever I want, and it doesn't hurt at all. Sorry, kiddo," I apologized to the crestfallen teenager.

"Can I be a bird again?" I asked to no one in particular.

"Are we that unbearable?" asked Elena with a small smile. I grinned back.

"I have to bear you either way, but I do prefer the ability to fly," I confided. She grinned and Stefan nodded at me before wrapping his arm around her waist.

I only had to think a second before turning into a black and orange hummingbird and flitting over to Caroline's shoulder. I matched her outfit perfectly. She was wearing a black jacket over an orange T-shirt and jeans, which made her, look very pretty. I settled myself comfortably on her shoulder, glancing at her smiling face for approval before turning my attention back to the conference.

"So what's the emergency?" asked Jeremy.

"Well, there were some werewolves that seemed pretty intent on killing me and Damon. Not the same ones as last time either," said Caroline from where I perched.

"Okay, do we know who they are? Tyler, any ideas?" asked Elena.

"No one's come to me, I've got no clue," he said.

"Katherine?" asked Stefan. She looked up.

"Why do you think I've got anything to do with it? It's not always my fault, you know," she said idly, grabbing a file for her nails.

"Is it _this time?_" asked Damon. She rolled her eyes and shook her head. He sighed. "Caroline, go get me some wolfs bane from downstairs," he said directing his attention to the girl serving as my perch.

Before I could move she'd gone, and as I turned into a human a prepared to land on the floor, someone caught me. Damon. I was in Damon Salvatore's arms rather than the floor. The switch was surprisingly preferable. "Um, thanks. I should probably stop perching on people," I said, climbing down and hoping I wasn't blushing.

"Might be smart," he muttered, but it wasn't hateful at all.

Finally, and after some debating, the meeting ended. "Give me a second," said Katherine pulling me aside. "Listen, Jules, Elena may hate me, but I don't hate her. Please keep her safe when I can't. Okay?" she said the second we were out of the hearing range of the others.

I nodded. "Of course," I said before she pulled me back to the others. Elena smiled at me and I smiled back.

"Hey, you want to come to dinner with me, Caroline, and Bonnie?" she asked as I was leaving. I shared a look with Katherine before nodding with a smile. I knew the others probably thought I was searching for permission, but really I just wanted to double check she'd heard. She didn't control me like she tried to control everyone else.

I climbed into her car in the passenger's seat and buckled my seatbelt as she started off the drive. She wasn't reckless, but she did enjoy speed, so I felt more comfortable with my seatbelt in place.

"So what'd you think of Damon?" she said with a sneaky grin.

"What do you mean? He seemed nicer than you portrayed him, considering you broke his heart and all," I said, assuming she was referring to the fight they'd had.

"He liked you. A lot. Otherwise he'd have let you fall," she said with such self assurance I almost believed her.

"You, dear friend, are insane. Now come on, I need to get ready for dinner and if I remember correctly, you need to hunt which means you need to get ready too," I said sadly.

I was looking forward to dinner but I hated that she hunted humans. They were people, with families! But she wouldn't listen to me, and as long as she didn't hurt them or leave a scar or something, I didn't really have any legitimate complaints. She'd compel them to forget about it; it was like it had never happened.

I pulled on a bright scarlet halter top that was close to skin tight and a pair of white cargo shorts that came to my knees. I grabbed a pair of flip-flops for a hot summer night and brushed my hair into a ponytail. "You look nice," Katherine commented as I brushed some pink lip stain over my mouth.

"You too," I said, taking in her short cream dress. When I say short, I mean that it barely covered her rear. It was fairly low-cut too. Of course, it would do very well for finding someone to drink- and probably sleep with, too- but I could never wear it. She grinned as she painted her lips with red lipstick and brushed mascara over her already perfect features.

"Uh huh. So, will Damon be there?" she asked looking me over again.

"I can't believe you're actually trying to set me up with your former lover. Do you care for him at all?" I asked, a little surprised at her.

"Of _course_ I do- that's why I'm doing it. He really wasn't as bad a picture as I painted for you- you'd be wonderful together. I care for both of you, so you should go out. Besides, you don't date enough. Never have. You're still… well, you know," she said, pointing out the face that I believed in abstinence until marriage. I rolled my eyes.

"Different lifestyles for different people, Hon," I reminded. She rolled her eyes and uttered a goodbye as she left.

I walked out the door of the inn we were staying at. She had tried to convince me to stay in a foreclosed home, but I refused, eventually wearing her down enough that she agreed to stay in the hotel. We had a two bedroom suite with a kitchen and living room separating the bedrooms, a master bathroom in each room, and a dining room off to the side. It was more like an apartment.

I arrived at the grill where Elena and Caroline were waiting for me. "Bonnie is late, as usual," said Elena apologetically. I grinned.

"Trust me, I'm used to waiting," I said and they looked at me curiously.

"Is Katherine often late?" I nodded.

"Or exceedingly early. That girl avoids on-time like the bubonic plague," I shook my head. Her inability to arrive normally was an unsolvable mystery.

"Hey guys, sorry I'm late," said the pretty witch.

We took a table and I ordered a vegetarian salad, noticing that everyone else had ordered meat. This wouldn't necessarily be pleasant.

We chatted idly, Caroline jabbering on happily about a boy named Matt and Bonnie expressing her frustration over a spell she was working on. I did my best to ignore the meat they ordered, and thankfully we ate fairly quickly. I hated not being able to stomach meat, but it was like cannibalism to me. The ability to transform into animals and talk to them made it sickening to watch people eat them. I sympathized with them of course, because they had no reason to feel that way, but it still hurt.

We dispersed and I decided to walk home rather than fly. The night was humid and quiet, with crickets chirping here and there. I took a deep breath of the clean air and smiled. "Hello," said an easily recognizable voice.

I grinned. "If you want to scare me Damon, you'll have to do better than that," I said turning my head to acknowledge him. I was temporarily stunned by his attractiveness. He really was very handsome; I didn't blame Katherine for being with him, just for breaking his heart. I loved Katherine like a sister, but I knew she was far from perfect.

"I wasn't trying to scare you, just greet you. If I'd have wanted to scare you, you'd know," he grinned. I smiled back.

"You're a little arrogant aren't you? Ah, well, most men are. Isn't it a beautiful night?" I asked with a grin. I looked up at the stars.

"It's okay," he said. I turned to him in shock.

"It's not okay! It's fantastic! Amazing! Marvelous! I mean, look at how clear the sky is!" I said. I wanted nothing more that to share my pleasure at anything with the world, and Damon seemed to be completely cut off from this beauty.

"I guess. I never really got the appeal of nature," he said. I stopped dead in my tracks. How could anyone not get the appeal of nature? "What?" he asked. I shook my head.

"Uh, never mind. Just forget it. Why are you here again?" I asked.

"No reason. I saw you walking by and figured we could talk," he said, not looking me straight in the eye.

"Alright. Well what do you want to talk about?" I asked, turning to him.

"I dunno. Anything I guess. I'm not much used to talking," he muttered. I nodded.

"What's your favorite animal?" I asked. He shrugged before smirking.

"What's yours?"

I thought for a moment. "My favorite animal for what? I like to be in the form of birds best, different ones depending on the situation. I like talking to any animals, but particularly cats. My favorite animal, by appearance, are llamas," I said, listing all the categories I could think of.

He looked at me like I was crazy. "Llamas?" I nodded with a grin. "Okay. Why do you like talking to cats?"

"Because they're so different. They can be mean one second, and desperate to please the next. Like Katherine, actually. And they say the most interesting things. They're really very smart, you know, and they never do anything without observing it," I said. He nodded thoughtfully.

"So you like cats and Katherine. Are you some kind of masochist?" he said. I laughed.

"You know she has some traits that make her worthwhile. She's… well… she's very smart. Clever, even," I said.

"Some might call it crafty, actually. Most would," he muttered with a scowl. "Where are you staying?"

"Up at the inn. Katherine and I are using a suite there for now," I said. Now he stopped in his tracks.

"You mean, you're actually paying to stay somewhere?" I laughed.

"You've got her nailed, I see. Yes, I convinced her to stay somewhere more legally. Why?" he frowned at me for a moment and then surprised me.

"You should stay with us. I'd like to have her nearby, and you shouldn't have to stay at a hotel," he said thinking it through. I grinned.

"You might want to consult you living partner about that. I doubt he'd be thrilled to have us. But thank you," I said as we began walking again.

There was a comfortable silence for a moment before he said "You look really pretty tonight," I looked up at him, watching as he looked me up and down.

I smiled. "Thanks. Here's my stop. Bye. I guess I'll see you tomorrow, right?" I said.

"Wait, what?" he asked. I laughed.

"We volunteered to watch the woods tomorrow, remember? Bye," I said, walking into the inn.

I didn't expect Katherine to be back until morning, so I texted her goodnight, and asked her to call in the morning. I pulled off all my clothes and stepped into a shower. The water was wonderful against my achy muscles, cascading down my body as I lathered my hair with minty smelling shampoo. I climbed out and dried off, changing into my undergarments and a large T-shirt. I brushed my teeth and hair before sliding under the covers on my bed.


	2. Chapter 2

Jewel POV

I woke up in the morning to silence, complete and utter. I changed into some denim shorts that went to mid-thigh and a cream spaghetti strap halter top. I made a quick breakfast before opening the window and blinking into the sunlight. It was a bright day, and warm. Summertime, a slight breeze, hmmm… I decided on a native species of hawk, something fast that wouldn't be thought about by anyone. I made sure no one was around and leapt from the ledge as a bird.

Flying is indescribable. The wind fluttered on my wings and swept across my body, ruffling my feathers and caressing my skin. It was warm today, too, leaving me happy and content.

I landed on the porch again, smiling. I knocked on the door which was immediately yanked open. Damon grinned at me before walking by briskly. I turned and followed. "You okay Damon?" I asked. He nodded.

He gestured to the car, so I climbed into the passenger seat. "So how's our darling Katherine?" he asked nonchalantly.

"She's fine. Hunting," I said with a wrinkle of my nose.

"I take it you don't approve?" he asked with an ironic grin plastered on his face. I shook my head.

"It sucks, but it's not like she's got another option. Wait, I worded that wrong. _Stinks_. It _stinks_," I said, realizing that the word 'sucks' sounded really insensitive. He laughed.

"Well, she could always do what I do. Or she could go Stefan's way, but I doubt that'll ever happen," he mused.

"What does Stefan do?" I asked, curious why Katherine would never try it.

"He eats animals," he said with a glint of humor in his eye. I gasped.

"Does he _kill_ them? Like, deer and bunnies? _Why_?" I cried. He looked at me for a moment, confused and a little astounded.

"Yeah, he kills them. But it's better than killing humans right?" I shook my head.

"Not exactly from my view. Besides, Katherine doesn't kill people much anymore. Just drink and seduce them. What do you do?" I asked, hoping for something new.

"I drink blood bags," he said. I raised an eyebrow.

"From hospitals? That's… really decent of you Damon. I'm impressed," I said. He looked at me like I was nuts.

"You're impressed? By what? How is it more decent than eating animals?" he muttered.

"I can be any animal I want Damon. Would you be happy if someone ate, I dunno, Caroline? I think not. It would appear savage and unjustified, right? That's how it is to me. And it is really decent. You don't kill anyone. You don't even really hurt anyone," I said, finally ending my tirade. He smiled at me.

"Thanks. We're here," he said, parking the car and climbing out. We were parked in front of a huge forested area. I grinned.

"Yay!" I said as I climbed out of the car. He looked at me.

"Yay?"

I nodded. "Yay. It means 'Hooray' or something along those lines," I said as he rolled his eyes.

"I know what it means. I'm questioning its use here. We just arrived at abandoned woods," he said. I nodded emphatically. He shook his head and grinned.

I followed him into the woods. "Should I be a deer or something? I'm kinda new to this whole stakeout thing," I said with a grin.

"Firstly, it's not a stake out it's a patrol. Secondly, you don't have to be a deer," he said with another shake of his head.

"What are we watching for again?" I asked looking at the trees.

"Signs of werewolves," he said sniffing the air.

"Why don't you just ask?"

"Ask who?"

"The animals," I said. Of course it was obvious.

"Um, because most people can't," he reminded me.

"Oh. Right. Hand on a sec," I said. I grabbed the lowest branch of a tree and pulled myself up. I gained my balance and jumped to a higher branch on the tree next to it, quickly doing a back flip so that I landed lightly on a branch with a bird's nest. "Excuse me, ma'am, I don't mean to bother you, but have you seen some wolves around lately? Or humans that changed into wolves, anything like that," I asked a chickadee.

Anyone else would have heard chirping, but I quickly deciphered the tweets into words. "Thank you, ma'am. Good luck with your eggs!" I said, beginning to climb down. Landing on the final branch, Damon offered me his hand, which I gladly accepted before stepping down. He didn't let go, and neither did I.

"So, there were humans that turned into wolves here two nights ago. They went that way, but she thinks they were pretty harmless," I reported.

"That would have been the night of the attack, and werewolves are never harmless," he muttered, almost to himself.

"Why not? Why can't you guys just get along? I mean, Caroline and Tyler seem pretty close, right?" I asked.

"Yeah, but not when Tyler's a wolf. When they're wolves, they want to kill us," he said.

"So befriend them when they're not wolves!" I argued as we walked through the woods. He laughed.

"You have some pretty weird ways of surviving. Do you want me dead?" he asked, looking me in the eye.

"Of course not!"

"Then I can't befriend the werewolves," he said. I pouted a little, but didn't argue.

"Here, I'll be right back," I said, reluctantly letting go of his hand to fly up, as a sparrow, into a tree. I looked around and noticed some smoke from a campfire drifting up through a patch of treeless area. I flew down, landing as a human. "There's a campfire about a mile to the East," I said. He nodded thoughtfully.

"Do you trust me?" he asked. I nodded uncertainly. Suddenly I was in his arms speeding through the woods. We were there in only a few moments, but it still frightened me.

"You jerk! Why didn't you warn me?" I cried, desperately clutching his dark T-shirt.

"Sorry. You ready to come down now?" he grinned.

"Stop enjoying my terror. And give me a sec," I said, still trying to get a hold of my surroundings. I slowly eased my feet onto the ground, a little dizzy.

"Easy there. Jeez, if I'd have known you were going to freak out like this I wouldn't have done it," he mumbled.

"You shouldn't have done it anyway," I hissed unsteadily. He sighed.

"Do you need me to carry you?" he asked. I frowned.

"I can walk," I said uncertainly. I began slowly alongside him until we reached the edge of the campsite.

"Stay here," he muttered. He went to investigate the campsite before coming back. "It's just some humans. I think we should go back. Um, it would be a lot faster if I carried you…" I frowned but nodded.

He gently picked me up and I closed my eyes until we stopped. "I officially hate that," I muttered.

"I thought you could be a cheetah or something," he said as I climbed down and into the car. I shook my head.

"Why would I be a cheetah?" I asked. He shrugged.

"So, I've got goodish news. Stefan says you two can move in if Katherine behaves," he said watching me from the corner of his eye.

I laughed. "Has he met Katherine? I'll ask her if she ever gets home. She'll probably say yes, she hates that hotel so much," I laughed again and he joined in.

He dropped me off at the hotel and I walked up into my room to find Katherine. "So, how was the date with Damon?" she teased. I rolled my eyes but couldn't stop the blush that rose to my cheeks. "Oh my god, you're holding out on me! Spill, spill, spill!" I frowned.

"First you have to promise to do me a favor," I said. She frowned but nodded. "Okay, so it wasn't really a date, but I definitely like him. I think he likes me too. He held my hand," I said and she squealed. "And I've got more good news. We're moving in with the Salvatores," the look on her face was like Christmas had come early "But, and this is where that favor comes in, you have to _swear_ to behave. I mean it, K, promise," I said.

She nodded. "Anything to get out of this _wretched _inn," she moaned.

I laughed. "I'll call Damon. What's his number?" I smiled as she recited it to me. I held the phone to my ear and my heart sped up just a little as he answered.

"What do you want Katherine?" he asked, apparently not realizing that I occasionally used her phone.

"It's me actually. Katherine has agreed to the designated terms. Tell Stefan that we both say thank you. And thank you for the offer. Really. I mean, I think Katherine might have perished if she wasn't in the lap of luxury within a few days!" I laughed as Katherine spun around and glared. "And of course she sends her love," I continued laughing as her expression got even more pissed.

"I'll bet she really hates you right now," said Damon, amusement dripping from his words.

"Oh yeah. Wanna say hi to Damon Katherine? No? Okay, then. Careful with that knife, darlin', those things are dangerous," I laughed again, Damon joining me.

"So can you move in by tonight? Stefan is going to be busy tomorrow, and I think he'd rather see Katherine come in than just take our word for it that she'll behave," he said.

"Yeah, Katherine's packing now. I've never seen her so productive. Maybe I should starve her of frivolous non-necessities more often," I said. Damon agreed before hanging up to tell Stefan.

As we pulled up to the house, Stefan and Damon came to meet us. "Katherine, what do we say when people let us move in with them? No? Fine. Katherine, what do we say when people let us move in with them and your best friend has your favorite silk blouse inches from the mud puddle over there?" I taunted. She was going to thank them herself if it was the last thing I did.

She glared at me, and then issued a reluctant thank you to both the boys. I laughed at her apparent discomfort until another glare silenced me. I grabbed my suitcase and one of hers before starting up the steps. "Do you need some help with that?" asked Damon.

"I'm good, thanks," I said, but he took Katherine's anyway.

"Anyone who can make Katherine that uncomfortable deserves some help," he said with a grin. "Besides, you don't know which room you'll be staying in," he pointed out. I followed him upstairs. He showed me several rooms as we passed, winding our way further into the labyrinth that was his house. He pointed out his room and Stefan's room and I did my best to remember which was where. "And here we are. This will be Katherine's room, and right next door, is yours," he said, opening the door with a lot of grandeur.

I smiled. "Let me guess; you picked it," he frowned.

"Why? Don't you like it?"

"Yes, but it's very… Damon. I'm more of a small-town girl myself," I said walking in and setting my suitcase down. Damon came in and tried to set the other one down beside it but I shook my head. "No, that's Katherine's,"

"You only have one suitcase?" he asked before being interrupted by Katherine's entrance.

"Believe me, I tried to get her to go shopping, but she's so _stubborn_!" she moaned.

"That might be because everything you wanted me to buy was no less than five hundred dollars, K," I muttered.

"But it was all so stylish!"

"K, those shoes were, and I kid you not, two _thousand_ dollars. For shoes. Katherine, I don't know about you, but I can spread two thousand dollars pretty damn far on other things, like food, shelter, and charity," I argued.

"They looked super good on you," she said, grabbing her suitcase and dragging it out.

"Well, I was with you up to charity…" Damon began before Elena rushed in.

"Hey! So you're moving in, and so is Katherine?" she said, apparently just catching up on things.

"Yep, but don't worry. She promised to behave," I said but Elena looked at me uncertainly. I grinned. "Didn't you Katherine?" I yelled. She was immediately in front of us, of course.

"As long as I don't have to go back to that awful hotel hell, I'll be happy to be reasonably good. Happy?" she said, turning to me. I grinned.

"Thank you, K," I said. Turning back to Elena as Katherine went to unpack I smiled kindly. "See? All's good. Promise," I said, relieved to see her nod unsurely.

"Did you just call Katherine, Katherine Pierce, 'K'?" asked Stefan coming in with a look of shock on his face.

"Yeah, so?" I asked grabbing my suitcase and tossing it on the bed. He shook his head.

"Nothing. C'mon Elena," he said taking her hand and leading her away.

"Well, well. What do we have here? A very lonely girl in desperate need for a night on the town!" cried Katherine. I sighed.

"For the last time, no. I am not going shopping with you!" I yelled. She pouted.

"What if Damon comes along? That way, you'll know you're crazy to pass up such adorable items!" she said happily. I rolled my eyes.

"I doubt Damon wants to sit and watch me try on outfits that cost more than most humans earn in a month," I muttered, sitting on the plush bed. The room was huge, decorated in cream colors, and really pretty. The walls were cream, which offset the walnut flooring nicely. There was a white shag rug on the floor, beneath a mahogany bed with white sheets and a big fluffy cream duvet.

"Well maybe you should let Damon decide. Damon?" she called before I could do anything.

"Yeah?"

"Jewel and I want you to help us shop," she lied. I glared.

"That's not entirely true, actually. You'd be completely miserable," I informed him. He grinned.

"I'll come. I'm completely bored here anyway," he said glancing at Katherine who was grinning. "Are you seriously always like this around her?" he asked her.

"What can I say? She has that affect on some people," she smirked at him and he rolled his eyes.

"I'll be downstairs," he called, already on his way down the hall.

"C'mon! I can't believe you're going shopping!" cried Katherine, already dragging me down the steps.


	3. Chapter 3

Damon POV

Jewel was in the passenger seat next to me and Katherine was in the back, filing her nails as though she was bored. As if I hadn't just seen her hyper as a teenage girl discussing her crush. Jewel was contemplating the horror she had just involved herself in, but I honestly couldn't see what was so bad about shopping. Katherine might be able to make anything hell, but shopping?

"Are we _there_ yet?" whined Katherine in the back seat. "I could _run_ faster than this,"

"But I can't, so hush before I realize how miserable I'll be and change my mind," said Jewel without opening her eyes.

"Fine," she muttered, probably pouting. I grinned.

"So what do you need?" I asked Jewel, not sure how she planned to spend the next hour at the mall.

"Nothing. I don't need anything. I have a suitcase full of perfectly good clothes and I don't need anything else," she growled. Katherine sighed melodramatically.

"Jules, you don't have a single gown or mini-skirt!" she cried.

"Most people would take that as an indication of what I like to wear. Stop being obnoxious," she said calmly.

"All you have are skinny jeans, T-shirts, and sneakers!"

"Which is as close as I can get to comfortable, thanks. All the other clothes you try to get me to wear are both irritating and ostentatious," she argued.

"But that's the point! You want to be the center of attention! Tell her, Damon," she said before I issued a sigh.

"I'm not involving myself, Katherine, but I don't side with you," I said.

"Why not?"

"Because you're _you_," I said, pulling into the mall parking lot. "Here we are,"

"It's really nice of you to do this, Damon, I appreciate it," said Jewel. I hid my pleasure. That was, of course, why I was doing this; I had no idea what Katherine had told her, but I was determined to prove her wrong. But I couldn't let her know that.

"I was bored anyway,"

"Okay, so first you need some formal clothes, accessories, some semi-formal clothes, some jewelry, some dresses…" Katherine began but Jewel cut her off.

"Firstly, I need none of these. Secondly, you're paying for all of this so you might want to limit yourself some," she said glancing at the mall map before turning left.

"Where are you going? All the department stores are this way!" cried Katherine.

"Exactly. C'mon, Damon. Wait no! This is assault! Let me _down_ Katherine! Katarina!" yelled Jewel as Katherine scooped her up and started off towards the department stores.

"This way, Damon," said Katherine as I smirked.

She set Jewel down in a store I didn't know and began sorting through racks of formal gowns. Jewel sighed. "I have no idea how she gets the money to afford these things. Maybe she works for the Mexican drug cartels,"

I laughed. "No, not enough glamour," I reminded her. She grinned.

"Here you go, fitting rooms are over there," said Katherine, giving her a shove in that direction. As Jewel entered the fitting room, Katherine turned to me. "So when are you going to ask her out?" she said. It was less of a question and more of an expectation, as usual.

"What makes you think I like her?" I asked with a devilish grin.

"Idiot. Whatever, but you should know that if you break her heart, I'll rip yours out," she said with a snarl.

"This is the only one I'll even consider buying," said Jewel as she exited the fitting rooms with a glare. In her hand she held a silk sky blue dress with a floor length, multi-layered skirt and a tight halter top bodice.

"What? What about that red one?" asked Katherine with a frown.

"That… thing has an exceedingly low neckline Katherine. I don't enjoy seducing innocent mortals, thanks," she said with a wrinkle of her delicate nose. She flipped her hair over her shoulder and I was captivated. It was a brownish color, but it was also reddish and when it shone in the light there were hints of auburn. Her eyes, which were a dark cyan, glinted with frustration.

"If you agree to buy and wear this dress, I will let you pick out whichever accessories you want. And shoes, total control over shoes. _Please_? You'll be my best friend!" said Katherine with an ironic grin.

"Fine. And I already am your best friend," she muttered as she began to hang the other outfits back up. I looked at the dress. It was dark red satin, the color of blood, and it was sleeveless. The neckline probably wouldn't reveal cleavage, but it _was_ pretty low. The bodice was tight but the skirt flowed, made up of bundles of satin.

"I have to hand it to you, Katherine, I actually like that dress," I muttered. She grinned.

"Thought you might," she smirked as Jewel came over.

"You don't wear jewelry except for formal events, so let's pick some for these dresses, okay?" she said receiving a nod from Jewel. We walked over to a jewelry counter as Katherine paid for the dresses. I decide not to mention the price to Jewel; she might have a heart attack.

She chose a simple, and less expensive, necklace for the blue gown. It was a small sapphire nestled in a loop of silver. She sighed. "Katherine, get over here. You're picking the jewelry for the red gown, provided you're nice about it," she muttered just loud enough for her to hear. Her head snapped up and she was over here so fast I double-checked that no humans had seen her.

She grabbed a ruby necklace and paid for both before we could see it. "Done!" Jewel shook her head.

"Fine. I'm not shopping anymore. We're the same shoe size, I'll borrow yours," she muttered.

"Wait! I actually need a new bra. Stay here or go to the food court of something," she said and I rolled my eyes.

"I'm gonna go to the bookstore. Want to come?" Jewel asked me as she picked up the bag of jewelry and began walking away. Katherine had taken the dresses.

"Sure. What do you need?" I asked. She grinned.

"Books are the only thing I'll buy when I don't need them," she said as she walked into the store. It was old and dim and smelled like dust, but she was grinning so I was willing to follow her.

"You like to read, huh? Well, Stefan and I have this library at home with some good books if you want to see it," I said. She spun around.

"Really? that would be awesome!" she cried and I nearly smiled at her expression. Almost.

"I figured you'd be in here. C'mon bookworm, I'm taking you and Damon out to dinner," said Katherine in her usual demanding tone. Jewel nodded with a slight grin. I followed them out. "So we should eat at the grill Jewel, but I've got to know if Elena will be there which I can't know. Where do you want to eat?"

"Wait, you're asking me? I feel so honored," Jewel said sarcastically. "I don't care, K, you know that. As long as they have vegetarian meals, I'm good,"

"Then we're going to a karaoke bar up the road. Do you know the way Damon?" asked Katherine.

"Uh, no. Why would I know where the karaoke bar is? You drive," I said taking the bags and throwing them in the trunk before climbing into the passenger seat. Jewel climbed into the back because unfortunately there wasn't room in the front. Katherine jumped in and I heard the click of a seatbelt behind me. Jewel hadn't worn a seatbelt on the way here, had she?

After a moment of Katherine driving I understood why she was wearing a seat belt and was inclined to do the same. We entered the karaoke bar and took a seat in one of the dimly lit booths. "So what are you girls going to sing?" I said slyly.

"I'm not, and Katherine will sing some slutty romance that will have every male's eyes on her," Jewel answered knowingly.

"Why aren't you going to sing? You used to sing in front of people," said Katherine glancing over the menu before looking at the meals.

"No, I didn't. I sang once, because you shoved me onto a stage while you hunted," Jewel argued. "Besides, you haven't said what you're singing. I suggest Madonna,"

"Oh, you're right! Like a Virgin. Perfect," she grinned. She sashayed over to the person working the karaoke machine with a smile.

"You know her so well," I said.

"Well, Madonna is perfect. Dominant, seductive, and glamorous. Katherine, in other words," she said as Katherine sat down.

"I'm up after this person, then you," she said. Jewel looked choked.

"Excuse me, what?"

"You're singing after me. Don't bother arguing, I compelled him to not let you wriggle out of this," she said with a smirk.

"Why do you insist on torturing me?" Jewel muttered before picking up the menu. Katherine, sitting beside her, smiled.

"You don't seem all that tortured to me. C'mon, what are you going to sing? Wait let me guess. Something by some little known band, probably something righteous to make me feel bad," she smirked knowingly.

"Yes, and yes. You're up. I'll order for you," she said as the song neared its end. Katherine stood up and waltzed away. The waitress came and took our orders; I noted that although I ordered pasta she ordered two vegetarian salads for her and Katherine. She also got Katherine a red wine while she ordered iced tea.

"So, what are going to sing?" I asked curiously.

"My name is love, by Amy Diamond," she said sipping her iced tea and watching Katherine. She was a good singer, but I knew it was a façade. I wondered which lucky guy would take her home tonight.

"I've never heard it," I said truthfully. I couldn't wait to.

"Well you will. Tell Katherine how much I hate her for me," she said in a dejected but resigned manner.

She climbed up to the stage, issuing a glare at Katherine. She started out and I grinned. Her voice was strong and beautiful, just like her personality. I noticed a boy about Jeremy's age pining after her and a spark of jealousy raged through me. Katherine sat down. "You're so whipped and you're not even dating. I'm disappointed Damon," she taunted, but I could tell she was really pleased with her matchmaking.

"Shut up, Katherine. She ordered you some vegetarian salad," I told her, raptly watching Jewel.

She seemed blatantly uncomfortable up there, but she was undeniably the prettiest woman here. The lights glinted off of her wavy hair like water of an ocean. She was wearing denim shorts that made her leg look miles long and a cream tank top that showed off her flawless skin. Well, not flawless. There was a small crescent moon shaped scar on her shoulder, curving under the spaghetti strap.

"Happy now, K?" she said sitting down and sipping her iced tea idly.

"Very," she muttered as she touched up her lipstick.

"How'd you get that scar?" I asked, pointing to it.

"Hmm? Oh, a vampire thought he could compel me. When he found out he couldn't he decided to try and kill me. I staked the jerk in the leg," she said.

"Why couldn't he compel you?" I asked. She grinned.

"I drink vervain twice a day and see this ring? This little blue orb is filled with it," she smirked. Katherine snorted.

"You didn't think I'd let her walk around without protection, did you?" she said in a monotone.

The food finally came and Jewel ate dainty bites of salad. My phone rang and I picked up with irritation.

"What do you want, Stefan?" I asked into the phone.

"Hello to you too, brother. Where are you? We need you and Katherine to help out over here," he said. I sighed.

"Fine. We'll be there in half an hour," I said. "Stefan wants our help. C'mon Jewel, she-witch," I said as I stood.

We walked out to the car in silence. Jewel climbed into the passenger seat next to me and Katherine climbed in the back before I could drive away. "So why do we need to help?" asked Jewel innocently.

"You don't, Katherine and I do. You know, the _vampires_?" I said, realizing I was being protective of a woman with absolutely no interest in me.

"You know, the _shape shifter_?" she said, mimicking me. "I can take care of myself," she muttered, apparently offended.

"Seriously, Damon, she could take whatever this is down. Give her a chance," said Katherine from the back. I pursed my lip.

"_One_ chance. I don't need you endangering the mission," I said, and immediately regretted it. She glared at me, her lips tightly pressed together as though she was trying not to say anything.

"I won't endanger the mission," she pouted angrily.

We pulled up to the house silently and she exited in a flurry, walking up the door and entering without another look at me. Guilt and regret formed knots in my stomach. Katherine sighed. "You're making my job a lot harder, you know that? Don't insult her ability- she's independent," she advised me before following her in.

I decided to go for a run in the woods to clear my mind. About half a mile away I stopped. I kicked a tree angrily, leaving a hole. Suddenly I heard a frightened mew. A tiny kitten stumbled out from behind the tree staring up at me terrified. I sighed before realizing that Jewel would love it. "C'mon little guy, I'm going to get you some help," I said, carefully picking him up and cradling him. He seemed frightened still, so I ran as fast as I could to the house rather than risking that he would jump or claw me or something.

"Hey Stefan, I found your next meal!" I called sarcastically. Jewel entered the room curiously before her eyes widened and her hand covered her gaping mouth.

"Stefan Salvatore, you had better not eat kittens!" she shouted down the hall before turning back to me and the cat. "Hey there sweetie, it's okay," she said, gently taking him from my arms and cradling him against her chest. The cat melted, forming himself against her curves. "Poor thing! Where did you find him?" she said, shifting her gaze to me as she gently swayed and rubbed the purring feline.

"Out in the woods," I said, feigning disinterest. She nodded.

Grabbing my hand she pulled me up the stairs to Katherine's room. "Katherine, look what Damon found!" she said. Katherine looked up.

"He'd better not have fleas," she said, before turning back to her magazine.

"Don't be heartless," she said, carrying him into the bathroom. She filled the sink with warm water, grabbing some shampoo and conditioner from the shower. Sliding the cat in, he drifted under purring louder. "Poor thing was freezing," she informed me as I watched her put some shampoo on her hand and begin rubbing the cat. The water began to be filthy as dirt was dislodged, so she drained the sink and ran the water from the faucet constantly to get the suds and muck off the kitten. Finally his fur was clean, if matted, and a pretty sable color. "I think it's a Bombay, don't you?" she asked and I could only nod. What the hell was a Bombay?

She laughed. "It's a breed of cat," she said, petting the purring ball of fur. She took some conditioner and began rubbing him down, working out the mats of fur. "If I'm right his coat will turn black and the eyes will be copper," she said as she washed the conditioner off. Taking a clean hand towel she patted the cat down before wrapping it up and holding it against her chest. "Do you by any slim chance have baby formula on hand?" she asked, rubbing the wet kitten behind the ears.

"No, but we have milk," I said, hoping to please. She nodded and walked back to the kitchen.

"Here," she said, handing me the kitten, still wrapped in the towel. She found the milk and poured it into a glass. "It's about two weeks old, right? It can't be any older than that," she said. I nodded again. Elena came in and gasped.

"Oh my God! It's so cute! Why is it here? Is it okay?" she asked.

"It'll be fine soon. Damon found it in the woods," Jewel answered.

"Can I hold it?" she asked and I passed the mewling kitten to her.

Jewels stuffed the glass of milk into the microwave before grabbing her purse and rummaging around in it. Pulling out an eyedropper, she pulled the tepid milk from the microwave and filled the eyedropper with it.

"Here, let me take it," she said, cradling the kitten again. Setting the eyedropper gently in its mouth the kitten began suckling at it immediately. "It's very lucky- it doesn't have fleas or mites or anything, and it seems healthy," Jewel told me and Elena. Caroline entered and immediately ceased her jabbering to coo at the kitten.

Stefan brought Alaric in and they too were awed by its cuteness. It was beginning to get cramped, so as soon as the feeding was done Jewel said "Okay, I think that's enough. Do you guys have a blanket and box anywhere?" but she said it to _me_ which made me smile a little. Apparently I was forgiven.

"Yeah, I'll go get some," I said and returned with a box and two of the softest, warmest blankets I could find. She set one blanket at the bottom before placing the cat in and bunching the other up around it. She handed it to me. "What's this for?" I asked.

"You found it!" she said.

"Oh, no, I don't know how to take care of this thing. You take it," I said and she accepted the box with nothing more than a smile. I was definitely forgiven.

Jewel POV

I woke up in the morning on soft pillows. The kitten was mewing for more milk so I took his downstairs and fed him before bringing him back to the stairs. I was wearing a T-shirt and some _really_ short shorts so I was glad that it was still around six in the morning and everyone was asleep. The cat sat weakly watching as I contemplated my wardrobe. Recalling Damon's actions from the night before, I sighed. I liked him, but did he like me? I could ask, but that would sound stupid.

I showered and dried myself off before I pulled on some black leggings that went to my knees and a denim miniskirt. I grabbed a vibrant green tube top and slipped on some matching flats. I put on some light pink lip stain and brushed my wavy hair out. It fell in wide spirals to mid-shoulder blade.

I gave myself a once over and smiled at the cat. Picking him up I smiled. "You just need some attention don't you? Well, come downstairs," I said to her. I checked the alarm clock; others should be awake by now.

Damon POV

I had been lurking; I admit it. I was bored and not at all tired. Jewel had come downstairs around six with the mewing fur ball, and I almost greeted her. Then I saw what she was wearing.

The T-shirt hadn't been so bad, but the shorts had been excruciating. She was undeniably fit, with well-shaped legs.

I had sat around for an hour, waiting, before I went to shower and get more appropriately dressed. When I came down next, she was still holding the cat. She was wearing a tube top that wasn't low cut, but showed off her pretty shoulders, and that interesting scar.

She wasn't wearing shoes either, which confused me.

"Good morning, why aren't you wearing shoes?" I asked, decidedly apathetic.

"I don't like them. They're constrictive," she said, looking up. She set the cat on the counter, holding her abdomen up and encouraging it to walk. I noticed that she had a tattoo on her inner leg, just above the ankle. Three stars, small then larger then small again.

"Okay. What are we going to name the cat?" I asked. She grinned.

"We're taking suggestions, and then she can choose which one she likes best," she said with a smile. I rolled my eyes.

"You know, most people just decide what their cats will be called,"

"Most people can't understand them. Would you enjoy going by 'foofy' or some other ridiculous domesticated name? I think not," she said, rubbing behind the purring cats ears. I shrugged.

Jewel POV

I smiled at Damon as he rolled his eyes at me. Elena walked in. "Hey guys, what's up?" she asked as she rubbed the cat behind its ears.

"We're taking suggestions to name her. Any ideas?"

"Belle is a pretty name," she said and I nodded, writing it down on a little pad I always kept in my pocket.

_It is pretty!_ purred the kitten as she rubbed against Elena's hand before collapsing. I laughed. "Yes, it is," I said, writing her again.

"Morning Jewel, Damon, Elena," greeted Katherine with a smile.

"Good morning Katherine. Any ideas for her name?" I asked gesturing to the kitten.

"Fur ball?" suggested Katherine. _ I don't like her _the cat decided.

"She just takes some getting used to hon. Don't worry, we won't name you fur ball. Stefan, any ideas for naming the cat?" I asked as he walked in. He looked up.

"Gatsby. As in, the great," he said, brushing his hand over the cat before kissing Elena. _I don't like it… what's the great Gatsby?_ asked the cat.

"It's a book dear, a famous old book written by a very good author. I'll read some of it to you tonight. Oh, hello Jeremy! Want to help us name the cat?" I asked as he walked in.

"Yeah, sure. Elena, you left this at home," he said handing her a history book. "What about Barcelona?" he asked. I grinned.

"Like the city?"

"Yeah! People name stuff after cities all the time, like Paris or London. Why not Barcelona?" I laughed and turned to the cat. _Barcelona is as pretty as Belle, but longer. I like it._

"The cat approves," I said, writing it on the pad.

"Hey Elena!" said two voices at once. Bonnie and Caroline entered simultaneously.

"I overheard, and I vote for Bambi!" said Caroline enthusiastically. Bonnie gave her an odd look as Stefan explained. _Bambi sounds nice but I still like Barcelona. It sounds so pretty. Bar-cel-on-a. It rolls off the tongue._ purred the cat.

"Okay," I said writing it on the pad anyway.

"How about sparky?" asked Bonnie. I nodded as the cat approved, jotting it down.

"Hey Elena, ask Alaric will you?" I asked. She nodded as she and the others left for school.

"So what do you want to do today?" asked Damon.

"I'm going to help this one learn her way around the house for a while. Then I need to get some baby formula and a litter box. Speaking of which, you should probably head outside for a bit," I said, opening the door and setting the cat down gently.

I turned around to see Katherine walking up the stairs and Damon looking at me. "Yeah?" I asked, assuming something was wrong with my outfit or something.

"Nothing," he said and walked up the stairs after Katherine. Oh well.

On the drive back from the vet I was surprisingly lonely. I was used to being alone, normally I enjoyed the peace and quiet, but right now I felt like I just needed human, or non-human, contact.

I entered the room to find that school had let out and everyone was present. Tyler turned to me and nodded. "I vote dog," I didn't have to listen to the cat to know she'd dislike it. I nodded reassuringly anyway.

Alaric grinned at me. "Bast, the Egyptian god of cats," I grinned. He was such a history teacher.

"Hey, can you find Damon? We can't start without him," said Damon. I nodded and walked out. Of course the cat followed me.

I knocked on his door which opened to reveal Damon. "Hey, they need you downstairs,"

I said but he rolled his eyes.

"Whatever. I'll be right there, c'mon in. I've just gotta grab some stuff," he said, rummaging in his dresser. I stepped inside, closing the door quietly behind me.

"Everyone's voted for the name but you? Any suggestions?" I asked, following him so that I was only about a foot behind him. I wondered why both his T-shirt and Jeans were so dark.

"I have no interest in naming that cat," he said.

"You brought her to me, which means you cared about her. Otherwise you'd have snapped her neck. You're apathy act might work with everyone else, Damon, but please don't pull it with me. What do you want to name her?" I said, crossing my arms over my chest.

"You're looking for feelings that aren't there, oh delusional one. Do you know where Stefan put my stakes?" he said before opening a large chest full of weapons.

"No I'm not. Why do you need so many weapons?" I asked as the cat propped her feet up on the edge.

"You're as stubborn as Katherine, you know that? I'm not a good person! I kill people!" he nearly shouted, moving next to me so that we were only inches apart.

"I refuse to believe that," I said. Sure, I was stubborn, but I knew he was better than everyone said.

"Why? What proof do you have that I'm not the monster I am?" he asked quietly.

I shook my head. I couldn't believe what I was about to do. I stood on my toes and met my lips with his. For a moment, nothing happened. Then he wrapped his arms around me and kissed me back.

"You shouldn't have done that. You have no idea what you're getting yourself into," he growled. I shrugged.

"C'mon. I've been best friend with Katherine for a century; how much more trouble can you be? We're late for this meeting thing," I said, pulling him down the stairs. The cat followed with a smirk.

"By the way, I vote Dolcezza,"


	4. Chapter 4

(BTW- Dolcezza means 'sweet' or 'sweetness' in Italian, which is Damon's descent and, in the books, his country of origin)

Jewel POV

No one had been surprised by the unspoken development in our relationship. Well, unspoken by all but Katherine. She wouldn't shut up. Every spare moment we had alone she bragged about her matchmaking abilities.

My head was resting serenely on Damon's arm as he read a book. The cat was playing with some string on the floor. We had yet to decide between Dolcezza and Barcelona because she swore they were both really pretty and she couldn't choose. I sighed and stood up, walking to the kitchen to get something to drink. Damon glanced up. "Something wrong?"

"I'm bored. No one's going to be home for _hours_ and I've got nothing I need to do," I exaggerated, sitting next to him. He grinned devilishly.

"I can help with that," he said, tossing the book on the end table and pulling me onto his lap. Before I could protest he silenced my reprimands with his lips. After a moment he pulled away with a grin. Grabbing his book he began reading again like nothing had happened.

"I'm still bored, and before you do something stupid again, we can't exactly make out for the hour until school is out and Katherine gets back from shopping. What do you want to do?"

"I think we _could _make out for three hours. Maybe more," he said with a grin.

"You're wrong,"

"Prove it,"

I sighed. "Damon, I mean it. If I can't think of anything else to do I'll start cleaning your house," I muttered, rolling off his lap to lay beside him.

"Well, there's a party later tonight," he said nonchalantly.

"What? When? Where?" I shot up and he laughed.

"It's a ball held every year around this time by the Lockwoods. Later tonight, an hour after the school gets out. It's held at their house," he said.

"That doesn't help me much. Maybe we _can_ make out for an hour," I mused desperately.

"I'm open to that," he said leaning over and kissing my neck. I laughed before pushing him away.

"I'm not quite that bored yet. Can't you think of anything to do?" I asked. He rolled his eyes and shook his head. I groaned. "Fine, then I'll play with the cat," I said, changing into a Maine coon. I hopped off the couch and began playing with the kitten.

"That's not weird at all," he muttered, continuing to read his book. I hoped up on the couch and rubbed against his knee. He reflexively reached out to pet me. I laid my head on his leg and purred as he read.

"Hey guys, school was let out early because there was a fire in the kitchen and… is that Jewel?" announced Bonnie.

"You bet. She got bored," he said. I let out a mew.

"I'm back! And so are you. Great. Hey Jewel," said Katherine, instantly turning from cheer to gloom. She picked me up and scratched me behind the ears. Setting me down she waited for me to turn back into a human. I sighed but obliged. "Did you know there was a party tonight?" asked Katherine with a smile. "Of course, I can't go. Elena will be there. But you're going. Right Damon?" she said, turning to my boyfriend.

"Yes," he sighed. "Unfortunately, I'm expected, which means Jewel will have to suffer with me," he said, turning the page.

"I suppose you want to treat me as a doll?" I guessed.

"Of course. C'mon, we need to get started," she said, pulling me up the stairs.

I sat in the chair as she bustled around, occasionally brushing something over my face. "Now, I know you'll want to wear the blue dress you chose, but please wear the red one. Damon will love it, and it will really suit the occasion," she said and I sighed. I glanced at the clock. With Katherine doing my beauty and idly chatting, nearly an hour had passed. We only had another hour to get to the Lockwoods. She needed to hurry up. I sighed in relief as she handed me the gown. I went to the bathroom and changed into the scarlet monstrosity, switching into a strapless bra. I walked out to the joy of Katherine. I had to admit, the dress fit me perfectly. "Here are some shoes. Now sit down so I can do your makeup," she said.

By the time I was finished I looked good. The dress made my figure look perfect, and the coloring of the dress drew the attention away from that nasty little scar. Katherine had pinned my hair into a stylish half-updo. Finally, she pulled a y-drop necklace with a tear-shape ruby at the end of it around my neck. "You're done! I'll go see if Damon is," she said, jogging out of the room.

I stood in front of the mirror and a sad smile drifted across my face. It had been at least a century since I'd dressed up, one hundred years since I'd felt this beautiful.

"Jewel, what are you doing? C'mon. Damon is ready, and Elena will be there in a moment. Stefan is there too, you're going to be late!"

I sighed. Stepping out from the room, I started down the stairs. I raised my hand to my throat and fingered the necklace that was so like the one I'd been wearing that night.

"Wow. You look good," said Damon slowly. His hair was slightly disheveled and I thought I'd heard him pacing, but I dismissed it.

"Stop staring. I'm allowed to look good," I smiled. He grinned and held out his arm which I gladly accepted. Elena walked down the stairs in a beautiful flowing ball gown shaded like a sunset.

As we climbed into the car, Damon and I in the back, Stefan and Elena up front, I stroked the dress, feeling the satin beneath my fingers. It was nearly identical to the one I'd been wearing. Katherine had probably planned it. "Something wrong?" asked Damon, snapping me from my reverie.

"Nope, just some nostalgia," I said briskly, weaving my hand tightly with his, desperate for some physical contact to drag me out of my memories. How long had it been since I'd felt like this? Too long.

"It sucks, doesn't it?" he said in a typical Damon fashion.

"Yeah but it's important. Bill Vaughn once said "It's never safe to be nostalgic about something until you're absolutely certain there's no chance of its coming back," I said.

"How do you know that?" asked Damon. I grinned.

"I used to read anything I could get my hands on. I loved to escape into different worlds. I even read the dictionary from time to time," I confided as Elena and Stefan chatted up front.

"I knew you were a geek. What type of genre did you like?"

"Ironically? I enjoyed reading about werewolves and vampires. Not that my parents much approved. They were worried I'd notice the similarities with them and their friends. Of course, it all came out by the time I was sixteen. I'd always talked to animals, but I just kept it to myself. I thought I was a freak. And then, on my sixteenth birthday, my second talent developed. I accidentally turned into a Siberian tiger," I sighed.

"That must have been interesting," he said, feigning his typical Damon apathy although his eyes fell to mine.

"Oh, yeah. It made life easier, though. They hadn't told me because they didn't know if I'd inherited it. Sometimes shape-shifter offspring don't. When I turned, they explained," I said. I hated thinking about my past life. It wore me out.

"Shape-shifters are immortal, right? I mean, you said you've been Katherine's best friend for a century, so you have to be. Where are your parents?" he asked, sitting up straight. I sighed.

"Dead,"

"I'm sorry," he said, barely audible.

"It's okay. They've been gone awhile," I answered equally quiet. Stefan could probably still hear us, but no need to draw his attention to it.

"How'd they die?"

"I'm not actually sure," I whispered breathily.

"Would … never mind. Are you going to dance tonight?" he asked. I looked at him curiously. He didn't often hinder himself from saying something.

"I was planning on it. Are you?" I said, laying my head on his shoulder. He seemed surprised, but I just closed my eyes.

"Well, one of the Salvatore brothers has to have fun," he said, his usual smirk playing at his face. I decided that I loved his cavalier tone.

He pulled his fingers from mine but before I had time to frown and protest he drew the arm around my shoulders and once again took my hand in his. "We're here," announced Stefan, exiting the car and opening the door for Elena with inhuman speed. Damon rolled his eyes. I stepped out of the car and smiled. The Lockwood house, which I'd only seen once, had completely transformed. Lanterns were hung on the walls and strung above ground. Civil music was playing and a gate opened into the backyard. I couldn't see the actual party, but I heard muted conversation and smelled an array of flower arrangements.

"Get ready for monotony," muttered Damon, coming up behind me. I rolled my eyes.

"You know you love it," I teased. He wrinkled up his nose, but didn't respond. Rather, he took my arm and walked with me to the backyard. I had been correct in my prediction that flowers were present; there were several centerpieces and decorations involving a wide array of roses.

A wide clearing was used for dancing, although many couples chose to stand around chatting instead. "Hey, guys, glad you could come. You especially, Jewel," said Tyler. His appearance before me, clad in a suit, was comical compared with his usual T-shirt and ripped jeans. Reading my mind he grinned. "Formal attire only, right?"

Damon dutifully carried on conversations with the towns founding families before he joined me on the dance floor. I'd opted to dance with Jeremy and Tyler, the poor dateless boys, which had frustrated Damon immensely based on his constant glances toward us. In spite of what he might think, they were both very nice and interesting. Personally, I preferred Tyler to Caroline's boyfriend Matt, who seemed very rigid and cold to her. Jeremy was less enthusiastic than Tyler was, with his slightly somber attitude and obvious signs of having lost much of what he cared about, but he interested me. I'd always wanted a younger sibling, though later I knew I was blessed to be an only child, and he filled that gap. Nonetheless, Damon had insisted on grabbing me immediately after Tyler and I had finished a waltz.

We were swaying to the music slowly when he growled at me. "Why'd you do that?"

"Do what?" I asked innocently. My arms were wrapped around so that my hands rested on his neck, and I played with his hair idly while he scowled. He was cute when he was angry.

"Dance with those other two," he said with a glare in Tyler's direction. Jeremy was dancing with Bonnie, who had shown up late, once again. I laughed.

"Now they're 'those other two'? Honestly, Damon, you'd think they stabbed you!" I giggled. He frowned. "C'mon, I was bored. It's not like anything happened. Don't you trust me?"

"I trust you. Not them," he said with another small growl. Then he sighed. "You're right. I shouldn't be like this. Don't do that though. Don't get me angry. I'm dangerous when I'm angry," he said, some weight dropped into his eyes. I shook my head.

"No you're not," I argued seriously. He was about to object when I kissed him. He kissed back, sweetly, not wanting to spoil the moment.

Damon POV

As she pulled away a happy laugh flowed from her round lips. I couldn't help but smile at her, letting some of that laugh warm me. I was about to kiss her again when Stefan interrupted us. "Damon. There's been trouble," he said, in that especially annoying way only Stefan can pull off. I nodded, taking Jewel's hand and following him.

When we were safely inside the Lockwood mansion, far away from the festivities, I did a head count. Bonnie, Caroline, Tyler, Stefan, Elena, Katherine, Jeremy, and Alaric were crowded into the darkly lit room. Rather than asking how Katherine got here, and knowing that the others were attending the party, I asked what happened.

"We found the werewolves. They agreed to meet us on civil terms, but only if we all showed up," said Alaric. I nodded.

"The humans will be staying here," I announced to no one in particular. Alaric shook his head.

"I'm coming!"

"You a vamp hunter. You don't count as human," He rolled his eyes. Bonnie was about to speak up when Jewel cut in.

"Bonnie, you should stay with Elena and Jeremy. You too, Caroline. It'll be safer if you're all in a group," she said in a way that didn't leave much room for discussion.

"You'll be staying too," I informed her. She smirked.

"I'd like to see you try to make me," she smiled. I frowned.

"It's dangerous," I reminded her. She rolled her eyes.

"So am I. Give me some credit, here," she said and before I could remark Katherine jumped in.

"Ahem. If you don't mind my saying so, she's coming. Now, let's get a move on," she said impatiently. Jewel took my hand as we walked through the doors, apparently trying to make amends, and I rubbed my thumb over her smooth knuckles to show it was alright.

The chill of the night struck cold against my heart at the thought of her being hurt, but the kiss she planted on my jaw warmed it again.


	5. Chapter 5

Jewel POV

The meeting place was deep in the woods and the others tended to jump at every cricket's chirp. It made me feel deeply at home, rather, and I had nearly forgotten the dangerous reason for our trespassing so deep in the forest.

When we finally made it to a clearing, I saw the outlines of five figures, two women and three burly men, who were looking at us with anxiety, fear, and confusion. No one moved for several minutes. I was between Katherine, who was at the left edge, and Damon on my right. Beside Damon stood Stefan, with Alaric at the back with Tyler. The werewolves were arranged like bowling pins, with an obvious leading male in front, the females fanning out behind him, and the other two males fanning behind them.

Katherine let out a huff, which meant she would do something bad, and before she could anger these strangers I stepped forward with my hand stretched out.

"I'm Jewel. Pleasure to meet you," I said with a smile. The leader, a tall, muscular man with curly brown hair, looked surprised.

"You too," To my immense relief he smiled. Shaking my hand, he asked "So what are you, exactly?"

"A shape-shifter. These are Stefan, Damon, and Katherine, vampires, Tyler, a fellow werewolf, and Alaric, a vampire hunter," I introduced us, before falling back in with Damon. The tension had been released and I didn't feel the need to be the center of attention any longer.

"What are a werewolf, shape-shifter, and vampire hunter doing hanging out with a bunch of vampires?" asked one of the women.

"We're a peculiar little group," agreed Stefan.

"Well, I'm Jason. This is Kate, my girlfriend," said the leader, pointing to the slender blonde who had spoken up about our oddity.

"Tony, Myra, and Jett," interrupted the red headed female, an athletic redhead, and a brawny teen with black hair.

"We aren't here to hurt you. We didn't know there were vampires in the area, and we're really sorry about the… incident. We thought we'd introduce ourselves. We're planning on moving on before the next full moon, so there's no danger," said Jason.

Stefan nodded. "Thank you. We don't want any trouble either," he said, holding back a little.

"He doesn't speak for all of us," growled the teen in the back. While everyone else had at least smiled or waved, he'd scowled at his feet. Damon stiffened at my side.

"What part doesn't apply to you?" asked Alaric, keeping his calm tone of voice.

"All of it," he said with a snarl. I frowned. I didn't want this to get out of hand.

"Jett, quit it," said Myra frowning.

"They're vampires. Why should we not kill them now?" he yelled.

"Well, for one, it's not a full moon, so we'd kick your ass," announced Katherine defiantly. Stupid vampire.

He looked ready to attack then and there. Jason seemed pissed, but ignored her for the most part. "Jett, this is their land. We should be thankful they're welcoming us to stay here. Don't screw this up," he warned, before turning back to us. "I'm sorry. He's still in his early stages of transformation; I'm sure that Tyler can tell you how hard it can be," he said.

Rather than leaving peacefully, however, as they intended they were struck dead still when Jett leapt towards Katherine violently. That wasn't going to work out.

I was immediately between them. "Not your best move, kiddo," I said as I threw him back towards the werewolves. He attacked me, and I could see Stefan and Tyler holding Damon back as I dodged him.

"Jewel, just deal with him already. I want to go home!" Katherine cried belligerently.

I sighed. "I'm really sorry about this Jason, but you have to know I don't have much of a choice. I hope this doesn't significantly change anything," I said to the leader of the pack. He nodded.

As Jett rammed me again, I didn't completely avoid him. Instead, I kicked his solar plexus. As he became unsteady, he opted to punch me. Bad move. I took his arm and promptly broke it. Then, because he looked like he might come after me again, I threw a quick hit which was sure to leave a bruise on his bloodied nose.

Damon had calmed down enough that as Jett fell to the floor of the forest Stefan and Tyler released him. I walked over to him and dragged him and Katherine into the woods, knowing that it was almost certain they would be the ones to create another predicament. "Are you okay?" asked Katherine when I deemed us far enough away to stop. There was certain concernedness in her eyes that few would notice. I nodded.

Damon perused my face before falling back to his apathetic demeanor. I smiled. They were both so darn similar.

"Well. I'm going to go back home. I'm tired," announced Katherine, stalking away and then running. I sighed. It was easy to forget that, throughout this ridiculous mess, I was wearing a scarlet satin gown. It wasn't easy to forget the heels. I didn't think I'd ever walk again.

Sinking next to a tree I pulled them from my feet. Damon sat next to me. "Are you sure you're alright?" he asked. True to his word, though he upheld it with everybody else, he let his demeanor slide away with me. I nodded.

"Yeah. I just hate doing that," I said.

"Where'd you learn? That was some pretty impressive skill," he smirked, pulling me to his chest. I nuzzled my face against his neck.

"Over time. Damon?"

"Yeah?"

"I lied earlier. I didn't get the scar from a vampire," I whispered. I was sure he'd leave me. Damon didn't like secrets. At least not those others kept. He tensed, but continued to hold me in his arms. I took that as an invitation to continue. "I got it from whatever killed my parents. It was some monster or something. I don't remember it too well, but it cut me. I'm sorry," I said. I clutched his arm.

To my surprise he didn't seem all that upset. Instead he stroked his hand along my back. "It's okay. Everyone has their secrets, and I can see why you kept this one," he said quietly. I smiled.

"Thanks, Damon. Don't tell anyone, okay?" His arms tightened around me and he nodded. "I'm going to bed. Wanna come?" He laughed loudly, causing me to blush. "That's not what I meant!" I cried. He just laughed and lifted me in his arms, proceeding to carry me home.


	6. Chapter 6

Damon POV

She rested peacefully in my arms all the way home, playing with the buttons on my shirt. To my aggravation, her feet were badly bruised from that little punk's attack. She shouldn't have been wearing heels. When I set her one the bed, she winced. Immediately on edge, I asked "Are you alright?"

She laughed a little. "I'm _fine_, Damon," she assured me, but her nervous glance at her feet didn't feel reassuring. I sighed.

"No, you're not. I'm calling Bonnie to fix your feet," I argued angrily.

"Please don't. At least give it until tomorrow morning," she plead, grabbing my hand as I got up.

"Fine," I said, sitting down on the plush bed next to her. She leaned back against the cushions. The bed was made, unlike mine.

"What were you going to ask me in the car?" she whispered tiredly. I thought back.

"Nothing. Forget it. Go to sleep," I muttered. She sighed.

"Stay with me?"

I laughed. "Gladly," I murmured, kissing under her jaw. She pushed me off with a frown.

Knitting her brows she shook her head. "Not like that. I'll kick you out," she threatened. I was confused - how else would I stay with her? - but I followed her demands and merely crawled up next to her. "Much better," she sighed, snuggling up against me and resting her head on my chest. She sat up again and began pulling pins out of her hair, tossing them onto the nightstand.

"Here, let me do that," I offered, reaching up to untangle the pointy demons from her locks. With my vampire speed I could have it done in an instant, but instead I took my time, let her silky tresses fall over my hands and her sweet scent encase me. I pressed up behind her, straddling her back as her shoulder blade length hair gradually fell in thicker, denser waves. She smiled and when I'd pulled the last pin out she leaned back against me, kissing my neck gently.

"Thanks. We should probably change," she murmured, her lips rubbing my skin with every word.

"Doesn't everybody sleep in formal wear?" I asked, wrapping my arms firmly around her waist and kissing her giggling lips. She shook her head.

"Bet Katherine does," she said thoughtfully, kissing me again. I almost groaned, but it was a policy of mine to never show that I felt something before a woman did. Instead, I pressed my lips harder against hers. I smiled a little when she twisted to wrap her arms solidly around my neck. "I'm going to change. You should too," she whispered, sliding from my grasp. I pretended not to be disappointed.

She got up and went to her dresser, pulling out the short shorts she'd worn to feed the cat and a T-shirt. I followed suit and quickly changed into some black pajama pants and a matching T-shirt, making it back to her room before she was finished changing. I regretted it. I could hear her, busying herself in the bathroom, the soft rubbing of fabric against smooth skin. She came out and jumped. "Whoa. You got here fast," she muttered, flopping on her bed and stretching out temptingly.

"Yeah, well, you know, perks of being undead," I muttered absentmindedly, tracing her tan curves with my eyes.

"Yeah, I guess," she yawned, closing her eyes and nuzzling her pillow. I frowned. That should be me.

In every relationship I'd ever had, we'd both be naked right now.

I jumped when her hand reached out to grab mine. "You're amazing Damon," she whispered drowsily. I wrapped my arm around her waist and her other arm came around to rest on the small of my back while I kissed her neck and cheek. "Sweet dreams," she murmured with a delighted sigh.

"You too," I said, settling in next to her.

This was better than any relationship I'd ever had.


	7. Chapter 7

Jewel POV

My eyes fluttered open to an empty bed. Where was Damon? A mew interrupted me from my distress. _What's wrong?_ "I'm fine, I just don't know where Damon is," I said quietly, not wanting to disturb the others. It was early; another reason Damon should still be sleeping.

Damon POV

I was cuddling a fully clothed girlfriend at five in the morning.

This was wrong. I shouldn't be doing this. I didn't cuddle, I didn't sleep with someone without _sleeping_ with them, and I certainly didn't enjoy it. I untangled myself and walked downstairs. This was crazy. I was crazy. Jewel was crazy.

I heard a noise upstairs and hurried up. "Oh, there you are," said Jewel, who was petting the cat. She hopped up from the bed and wrapped her arms around me, laying her head on my chest. "I was worried,"

"Then you should have come downstairs," I said, more harshly than I meant to.

"Um. I'm sorry? I didn't know you were down there," she said, brushing some hair out of her eyes and looking up at me with confusion.

"No, it's alright, I didn't mean to say it like that," I quickly apologized. She smiled up at me and pecked my lips.

"I'm gonna take a shower," she announced to no one, spinning on her heel towards the bathroom. I sighed. Grabbing the kitten I took him downstairs to be fed. A half hour later, after I had eaten breakfast and changed into dark wash denim jeans and a black button down, Jewel returned. She was wearing a purple blouse and skinny jeans. She was also wearing purple leggings, but no shoes, as usual. "Good morning," she purred, sitting next to me and kissing me square on the lips.

"I'd say," I grinned, pulling her into my lap and returning the kiss avidly. She repositioned herself to be leaning against me, clutching at my shirt with one hand and my neck with the other. I heard someone coming down the stairs and pushed her off me immediately. The hurt look on her face made me want to take her back, but she'd thank me later. The last thing she needed was Stefan telling Elena she was a slut, or Katherine teasing her endlessly.

"Hey guys. So, Stefan spent the night at my look-alike's and they have plans _all day_. I'm going out of town for exactly two days. Don't go and get all mushy and turn into everyone's favorite star couple while I'm gone," she said, heading back upstairs.

"Random," muttered Jewel. I leaned in for another kiss, but she pushed me off with a pout. "Not a chance, lover boy," she muttered, the hurt still evident in her eyes from my 'rejection'.

"C'mon, Jewel. I heard someone coming downstairs!"

"So? The only two possibilities would be Stefan, your _brother_ or Katherine, my _sister_! Why should that matter?" she cried, crossing her arms and angling her body away from me. Women could be so weird sometimes.

"I didn't want to embarrass you!" I shouted quietly, letting some of my frustration bubble over. She huffed.

"What's that supposed to mean? If I were embarrassed to be with you, I wouldn't be kissing you senseless on a couch!" she said belligerently. I blinked.

"You weren't kissing me senseless. I was kissing _you_ senseless," I informed her. Her eyebrows unknotted a little as her anger subsided.

"Is that so?" she asked, scooting a little closer to me so that our knees touched. I nodded cockily. "I disagree," she announced.

"We'll just have to test that theory," I decided. I pulled her onto my lap at vampire speed so that she was straddling my hips. She squealed in surprise, laughing and leaning down to kiss me. I was forgiven, again. At least this time it didn't take a small animal. Wrapping her arms firmly around my neck, she leaned into me, her damp hair tickling my face and neck. She was smiling and so was I. The fervent kisses from earlier had been replaced by quick, repetitive pecks that matched the lighter mood.

She released one of her arms to grab one of the hands that were resting on her lower back. Intertwining our fingers felt oddly right. She pushed me into the couch before pulling away. "Promise you won't leave," she demanded with a sudden seriousness. I frowned at her. "I won't leave you," I said, a certainness echoing in my voice. It was disconcerting that I meant it. She smiled again.

"Good," she said, diving to plant a kiss on my neck. "Have you had breakfast?"

"Yeah, but I can make you some if you want," I told her, kissing her collarbone. She sat back on my legs so I couldn't.

"A man who cooks! You, I could live with," she teased, tracing tiny little shapes on my shoulder.

"Got news. You already do," I said moving out from under her so that she fell on the couch. I walked to the kitchen as she kneeled on the sofa, getting her mind together. When she finally adjusted, she climbed up and followed me in.

"That wasn't very nice," she declared absentmindedly, sitting on the counter.

"I'm not very nice," I reminded her. The kitten hopped into her lap so she petted him while I threw stuff into a bowl. "What do you want to do today?"I said as I stuck the pan into the oven. I was making her muffins.

"I dunno. What about you?" she asked.

"I'm heading out!" called Katherine from the front of the house before a door slammed and an engine revved. She smiled as I came over and wrapped my arms around her waist.

"I have _several_ ideas," I whispered against her ear, eliciting a tiny shiver. She tried to wrap her arms around me, but I neatly dodged them and leaned against the opposite wall.

"Tease!" she accused, laughing. Hopping down, she wrapped her arms around my neck anyway and pressed up against me. "Well, too bad. I'm getting my kiss," she declared firmly, before pressing her mouth steadily against mine. The kiss was deepening when the oven beeped. She groaned in frustration, and I wasn't far behind.

"You're the one who wanted breakfast," I reminded her, taking an oven mitt from the rack to grab the scalding muffins.

"Yeah, but not when we're… preoccupied," she trailed. "You baked _cupcakes_?"

"Muffins. I made you _muffins_," I argued. I did not bake cupcakes. Cupcakes were girly, glittery, little-girl-pastries that I did _not_ associate with, much less bring about into being. She was laughing at me, one hand brought up to her face to cover her smile.

"What exactly is the difference, hon?" she giggled. I rolled my eyes, although the 'hon' didn't escape my notice. I liked it. Not as sappy as 'honey', because it was shortened and therefore not as mushy, but far better than nothing at all.

"Muffins are… they don't have icing! And they're healthy. You don't have chocolate muffins," I informed her belligerently. She continued to laugh.

Jewel POV

He continued to scowl at me. "Oh, c'mon, you have to know this is ridiculous, right?" I asked him. He turned away from me. I couldn't tell if he was actually mad this time. "You're seriously mad at me about cup- muffins? You're mad at me about muffins," I said, beginning to worry. I sighed. Wrapping my arm around his waist I looked up at him. "I'm sorry," I said, though I still wasn't sure for what.

He grinned. Brushing some hair from the side of my face, he kissed my neck. I didn't bother to hide my moan as he pressed deeper into my skin. I could feel his victorious smile. "Hey Damon?"

"Yeah, babe?" he asked.

I quelled my pleasure at being call babe, which implied some amount of permanence, and tried to gather my spinning thoughts into a formed idea. "I figured out what I want to do today," I said. He rubbed his nose along my jaw before kissing my collar bone again and stealing another moan.

"What's that?" he asked quietly, in a low voice. His tone was arrogant, but curious. I smiled as sweetly as I could, preparing my pitch to be the highlight of innocence.

"I wanna bake cupcakes,"


	8. Chapter 8

Jewel POV

"No," he said flatly. I frowned.

"No?"

"No," he confirmed. I shook my head.

"I never said I'd do it with you. Maybe Tyler will help me," I thought aloud, knowing it would get him possessive enough to convince him. He growled against my neck.

"I'll kill him," he threatened. I shook my head and leaned against him, pushing on him to look at me straight on.

"I'd rather you didn't. His mom was really nice," I said absentmindedly. "Why don't you want to make cupcakes? I think they're cute! And then we could decorate them with icing and sprinkles and stuff," I said. He wrinkled his nose.

"Because every vampire wants to get covered in sprinkles!" he muttered facetiously. I laughed.

"How about you don't bake them. Just help me do it!" I suggested. He shook his head. "Please?" I begged, batting my eyelashes. He rolled his eyes and leaned back.

"Fine. I'm hopeless," he declared. I giggled.

"Maybe. But I like it," I said, planting a delicate kiss on his nose before pulling away. "What does one need to bake cupcakes?" I asked. I didn't have much experience cooking, so I was glad that Damon was there to prod me along.

"It depends what cupcakes you want to make," he informed me. I blinked and gave it a thought.

"All of them," I decided. He laughed.

"Let's start with one. What's your favorite cake?"

"Uh… the red one?" I asked. It was red and spongy and sometimes people filled it with cream.

"Red velvet?" he asked amusedly.

I nodded enthusiastically. "That's it!"

"You don't bake much, do you?" he asked, leaning against the counter opposite me with a sly smile.

"Close to never," I said. He shook his head.

"Well, then let's get going," he decided. I nodded.

"Anything you say, chief," I teased. Grabbing my hand, he dragged me out to the car. When we got to the grocery store I followed him around like a puppy, not really understanding what all we were buying. I offered to pay for it, but he wouldn't let me. I suspected that he liked doing this after all.

When we got back home, Damon dumped the groceries on the counter. "There you go," he said. I pouted.

"What do you mean? I don't know what to do! You said you'd help me!" I said defiantly. He smirked evilly.

"Help, not direct. I'm sure you can figure this out. Here's the recipe," he said, handing me a book. He quickly folded the page corners of a page labeled 'RED VELVET CUPCAKES - CREAM FILLED'. I sighed.

"You're stubborn, you know that babe?" I asked him. He nodded with one of his trademark cocky smirks on his face. I began unpacking the food until I wasn't sure where I was in all this mess. I suspected I was neck deep. "Damon. You _have_ to tell me what to do. I have no clue!" I said, holding up two different kinds of sugar. I didn't even know there _were_ different kinds of sugar!

He chuckled. Moving over to me, he flipped to the page in the book that he'd marked. Grabbing some of the ingredients, he took a bowl and showed me how to measure them into it. While I was mixing, he sprayed something greasy into a cupcake pan and set it on the counter. When I was done I watched him pour them in, all exactly equal, two-thirds full. He was surprisingly cute when he was helping me with some silly whim. "Is that so hard?" he asked smirking as he set the pan in the preheated oven.

"Yes, but not with you helping me," I giggled as he wrapped his arms around me from behind to look at the book.

"Then maybe I should help you more often," he told me with a quick peck on the shoulder. I grinned wider.

We started on the icing

"We're doing cream cheese icing," he informed me.

"You put cream cheese on red velvet cakes? Ew," I muttered. He laughed.

"I thought it was your favorite cake!"

"It _is_, but cream cheese is still gross," I argued playfully. He shook his head at me, but he was smiling. "This was fun," I said as I looked at the baking cupcakes.

"It's not over yet," he said with a grin.

I touched the icing and licked my finger to taste it. "You know, that's not actually as gross as it sounds," I said smiling. He was looking at me peculiarly. "What?"

"Nothing," he said coyly. I glared good-humoredly at him.

"Tell me!" I demanded with a laugh but he didn't give in. "Fine," I said, dabbing his nose with more icing.

"You did _not_ just do that!" He laughed at me, tackling me onto the hardwood floor. I gasped in surprise and mirth before trying to push him off. Unlike my other attempts however, he wasn't making it so easy. "Not a chance, icing girl," he growled, amusement filling his eyes to the brim and a smile planted firmly on his face. Before I quite knew what was happening, he was kissing me passionately and inadvertently spreading the icing all over my nose, too.

"Damon! I'm getting all sticky!" I cried, pulling away from him, both of us laughing hard. I reached for a rag on the counter, but couldn't reach it because I was lying on the floor with Damon on top of me. He handed it to me and I wiped my face off before giving it back. When we were both clean and still lying on the floor somehow, he grinned down at me. "You've still got something on your face," I lied.

"Really?" he asked slyly. It was obvious that he was on to me. I smiled.

"Uh huh. Right here," I said, pulling him down and kissing his lips. This time it was his turn to moan. I was pulling him on top of me, slowly. He wrapped an arm around my head and another lay around my back as we descended. Without warning the oven gave a loud beep. "Dammit!" I said, untangling myself from him to glare at the oven. He chuckled, but it was more husky that usual.

"We need to quit baking things," he decided. I nodded. He grabbed my hand as he climbed up, tugging me with him. Removing the cupcakes and letting them cool, we started talking. "What are we going to do with all these cupcakes?" he asked me.

"I dunno. Hadn't gotten that far. We could give them to your friends. Eating them sounds good," I said. He looked up.

"They're your friends more than they are mine," he told me. I smiled softly at him.

"They care about you, Damon, even if they'd never admit to it. Especially Stefan and Elena. They want you to be happy," I said.

I wrapped my arms around him. "No they don't," he whispered.

"Hush. You can be such an oblivious idiot sometimes, you know that? Of course they love you," I whispered back. He hung his head but didn't stop me from rubbing circles on his shoulder blades.

"Now, are we going to ice cupcakes or what?" he said, stepping back to his carefree attitude. I rolled my eyes.

"If you wanted a hug, next time just say so," I scoffed at him, but we were both smiling. "Where are sprinkles?" I asked. He frowned.

"I am _not_ making cupcakes with sprinkles," he stated loudly.

"Earlier you weren't making cupcakes at all. Where are they?" I pointed out with a laugh. Grudgingly he pointed to a cabinet where I found bakery decorations.

"Elena did a bake sale thing down here. She was into sprinkles too," he said, twisting the word sprinkles around in his mouth. I laughed.

"Unlike you dignified vampires," I said setting them on the counter in preparation. The sprinkles were red. I figured as long as we were color coordinating, we should do it well.

"Exactly," he said. I laughed.

"What are we going to _do_ with all these?" I said, the sheer mass of nearly thirty cupcakes for two people striking me as insane.

"We could give some to _Tyler_," he suggested. I smiled.

"That's very big of you Damon. I'm sure all our friends will gladly accept cupcakes. But I think there might still be too many," I said, having no illusions that he wasn't being totally sarcastic and probably imagining the teen's death right now.

Damon POV

She obviously hadn't caught my sarcasm when it came to giving that mutt cupcakes. Well, I could poison them, but I doubt Jewel would approve. "I guess we'll just have to figure something out," I said, putting the cupcakes on the rack.

"I hate that you can do that so fast," she announced with a glare at my liberated cupcakes. I grinned.

"Jealous?" I asked, to which she harrumphed and turned her back to me. I came up behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist. Resting my head on her shoulder I watched her gracefully cut cones into the bottom of the cupcakes and level them off, like the recipe said to. I filled them all with the icing and she put the small circular discs of cake back in place at the bottom.

We iced the cakes and I made a point of taking my time. She tilted the sprinkles so they cascaded onto the icing. I had to admit, they didn't look _worse_ with the sprinkles.

I grabbed one of the cupcakes and took a bite. "These are good," I told her. She took a much smaller, more delicate bite and smiled.

"They are. I think this is a success!" she laughed. I loved the way her eyes lit up when she laughed, like her face was full and before it was empty, but you didn't notice. I would give anything to keep it that way.

"I agree," I said, bending down to snatch a kiss. She set the cupcake down and pulled me into her for several minutes. "What was _that_?" I asked, dazed after a kiss for the first time ever.

"You taste like my favorite cupcakes!" she said delightedly. I laughed.

"You know what? I think they're my favorite now, too," I confessed. She giggled and kissed me again.

It was odd kissing a girl without expecting, or wanting, more to come of it, but I liked this peacefulness that she instilled in me. I loved the taste of her, even tainted by our favorite cupcakes, and the smell of her, cinnamon and orange and cloves. She was tugging gently at my hair and she was pressed up against me. I couldn't imagine it any other way.


	9. Chapter 9

Damon POV

By the time Stefan decided to come home, bringing Elena and strutting about like a love sick puppy, Jewel and I had moved to the couch where I was reading some book and she was surfing the web with her earphones plugged in. I couldn't focus on the shallow characters or plot because Jewel was sitting in front of me looking just so damn _tempting_ and all I wanted to do was drag her upstairs and spend a good few hours with my lips on hers. "What are you doing on there?" I asked. She jumped a little, because Stefan and Elena were in his room and it had been eerily quiet.

"Nothing, just surfing the web," she said absentmindedly. "What does your bedroom look like?" she asked with a bare note of curiosity in her voice.

Although I was surprised by the question, she couldn't have made this any easier. "Wanna come see?" I asked, letting the flirtation and innuendo drip from every letter.

"Sure," she said, setting her laptop down on the table and looking at me expectantly.

"I was _kidding_,"

"I know, but I'm curious!" she cried with a smile. "Please? Tell me the infamous Damon Salvatore isn't reluctant to show a girl his bedroom!" she teased. I frowned. I didn't like that she thought of me as 'the infamous Damon Salvatore', even if it was just jesting.

"Fine. Follow me," I muttered, tossing the book next to her laptop with deadly precision. She followed after me happily and when I finally opened the door I wasn't in as bad a mood as I had been earlier.

"Neat!" she gushed. Then turning to me, she asked "What size is that bed, exactly? It looks like you could fit the whole female soccer team in it…"

"Which I haven't, for the record,"

"Never thought you had, darlin'," she said. I found myself smiling in spite of my desperate efforts to keep it in check.

Until I heard someone behind me. "Wow. Didn't know you smiled," said the snarky black witch. What the hell was she doing here? "Be nice, Bonnie," said Jewel behind me but by then my smile had disappeared and I was back to my usual self. Bonnie went downstairs and I stormed into my room. Jewel closed the door behind me with a sigh. I sat on my bed and lay down with my legs hanging over the side.

"Go away Jewel. I'm upset," I said. She nodded, but went to stand beside me. "I said to go away,"

"You also said you were upset. One holds more weight than the other. I'll give you three guesses which," she said with a tiny smile.

"There are only two options," I muttered, closing my eyes. She giggled.

"So there's a flaw. Everybody has them. Even Damon Salvatore," she said, lying on her stomach next to me.

"I'm more flaws than anything else, Jewel," I said. She didn't say anything, but I could sense her hand slowly crossing my chest. Then her lips felt their way along my jaw. "Quit it. I'll hurt you," I warned her.

"No you won't," she whispered. She tossed her leg over mine so that she was lying on top of me. "Why are you upset?"

"Leave me alone, Jewel. I'm a bad person! You shouldn't be involved with me!" I yelled, looking at her with the most violent expression I could muster.

"Oh. That explains it. Damon, look at me," she said, stroking my cheek with her hand, "You're not a bad person, and I don't have any wish to ever be involved with anyone other than you," she said firmly.

"I don't believe you. About the first part, I mean," I told her honestly, although I was finding it more and more difficult to sink into the familiar realms of depression.

"Too bad. It's true. Not believing it doesn't change that, you stupid vampire. Now c'mon. I want more cupcakes," she said with a ridiculous grin plastered to her face.

"I don't, nor will I ever, deserve you," I said truthfully. Her grin widened until it rivaled the stars.

"I know,"

"Hey!" I laughed. "Get back over here!" She had pranced to the giant mirror and pile of books before I had time to grab her.

"Come and get me," she said in a way that could only possibly seductive when she said it. I ran over to her too quickly for her to know what was happening before she was much too busy doing something else to possibly contemplate cupcakes.

"Mmm. You still taste like cupcake," she murmured with a grin. I chuckled. Kissing the side of her face made her blush, which only made me want to do it more. She was ducking her head and her hair was falling in her eyes and I'd never seen anything half as adorable in my lifetime. "I think I like this better than the real thing," she said, still thinking about cupcakes. I beamed.

"Do you want to go out tonight?" I asked.

"What, like on a date?"

"_Yes_ like on a date. What's wrong with that?"

Her lips slowly turned upwards as she ignored me, contemplating. "I'd like that. Where do you want to go?" I shook my head.

"Surprise," I said. She laughed.

"Look at you, with your masculine wiles," she said, before pulling me down to kiss me. "Mmm. I forgot, I said I'd help Elena with something or other, so if we're going to go out later I should go help her _now_," she said as I kissed along her neck.

"Or you could blow her off," I suggested, moving onto her jaw.

"Just when I was thinking you were cute!" she laughed, but was abruptly cut off from saying anything else when I tugged lightly on her ear and she moaned. I even felt her knees buckle slightly.

Jewel POV

Damon knew exactly what he was doing to me, and he was enjoying every minute of it. Jerk. Cute jerk, but still. He was sucking at the soft skin below my ear and I couldn't have spoken if I wanted to. Which I didn't. I was clutching at his shirt trying to pull him closer, because I needed him like I need air, not that I'd ever admit it. Didn't need his ego inflated any _more_.

"D-Damon, I need to go help Elena," I breathed, mortified when I stuttered. He chuckled but didn't tease me like I thought he would.

"That's fine. I need to prepare for our… date," he said, tasting the word, trying it out on his tongue, before shrugging and leaving. I checked myself in the mirror, adjusting my clothes and hair until I was sure there was no sign we'd been making out, and went to go find Elena. She was at the kitchen table, staring into space.

"Hey. Um, you needed my help?" I asked. She nodded.

"Yeah. I wanted to know why Katherine's doing this," she said. I frowned.

"Doing what?"

"Being here! She's not who you think she is, Jewel, and she's brought Damon and Stefan and everyone I care about nothing but pain," she said, standing up. "Why is she here?"

"I can't do this right now," I said, spinning around and going to my room. I shut the door and locked it. Grabbing a pillow I sat on the bed and held it to my chest.

"If you don't let me in, I'll break down the door," called the voice of my now ever-present boyfriend.

"Go away, Damon," I said tiredly. "I thought you were off doing something,"

"Alright then," he said and I watched as my door swung open and Damon waltzed in, swinging the key around his finger. "It _is_ my house, after all," he said, shutting the door and coming to sit next to me.

"I said to go away,"

"You also said you were upset," he said in his best girl imitation voice. I laughed in spite of myself.

"No, I didn't," I argued. He wrapped his arms around me and kissed my forehead.

"Does it matter? You are," he whispered. I sighed.

"It wasn't right, what she did to you. It wasn't right then and it isn't right now, and I wish so badly I could hate her for it but she's my sister and I can't, and I'm sorry," I blurted all in a rush.

"I don't want you to hate her," he whispered, stretching to kiss the back of my head.

"She's not bad. Really she's not. She just… she doesn't know how to be good," I said. He smiled sadly.

"I know,"

I sighed. "You're one of the best things to ever happen to me," I said, leaning my head against his chest and wrapping my arms around him. I felt his arms tighten around me. "What should I wear for our date?"

"A bathing suit," he said. I looked up in surprise and he grinned. "Preferably a bikini," he said, giving me one of his famed looks. I rolled my eyes.

"We'll see," I said lightly. He looked a little surprised at my answer, and even a little eager. "Is it still a surprise?"

"Absolutely," he said. I smiled up at him and stroked his cheek, grabbing onto his chin gently with my thumb and forefinger, bringing him down to kiss me. This one was his gentle way of reliving the tender moment we'd just experienced. "It's getting late. You should get ready. I'll meet you in the car," he said with a final peck. I watched the door for a minute after he left, and then I jumped up and grabbed my bathing suit. It wasn't a bikini, but it was a two-piece. The halter top was decorated with large blocks of color, creating an abstract look, with a large black elastic band at the bottom. The bottom was black with an elastic band at the top that had the blocks of color. The colors were in hues of blue, green, and purple, all matching.

I grabbed a translucent white gypsy skirt that I used as a cover-up and a matching button down. As a last though I grabbed a white hair band and put it on my wrist before slipping into some white flip-flops and heading downstairs. Luckily I didn't run into Elena or Stefan, and only grabbed a quick glance of the cat. It seemed she was trying out all of the hidey-holes in the old house. When I slid into the passenger seat, Damon smirked. "Bout time," he said, glancing me up and down. He was wearing black swim trunks and a black T-shirt.

"Why do you always wear so much black?"

"Why are you covered head to toe in white?" he asked back. I wrinkled my nose.

"But I'm not all the time. I'm going to get you a new shirt. A white one," I declared with a smile as we started off. He rolled his eyes. "Are you finally going to tell me where we're going?" I asked eagerly. He grinned at me.

"What do you think?" he asked. I crossed my arms and tried to hold back a smile.

"Secretive," I teased. He smiled.

"I'll give you a hint. We're having dinner,"

"In our _bathing suits_?" I asked with a laugh. He shrugged. "That doesn't count as a hint, Damon Salvatore, a hint is supposed to clarify, and that only made me _more_ confused!"

He just shrugged again. I rolled my eyes and pried one of his hands from the steering wheel to hold. Playing with his fingers didn't seem to annoy him, so I focused on that, failing to notice our surroundings. "We're here," he said, putting the Chevy in park. I smiled.

We had pulled up to a clearing surrounded on three sides by woods. In front of us was a large pond and beneath a giant water oak a little table with two chairs was set, complete with a pizza box. "This is amazing," I whispered as I climbed out.

"I thought so, anyways," said Damon, gesturing gentlemanly to the table. I grinned. I didn't know how he'd set this up in so short a time, but I loved it with all my heart.

"So chivalry's not dead, then?" I laughed, taking his arm. As we ate we talked about everything from our favorite color's (mine was blue, his was black) to what TV shows we liked, but we hovered well out of the range of profound conversation. When we were finished he invited me to go swimming with him. "Isn't it cold?" I asked hesitantly.

"It's some kinda freaky natural spring that stays warm all through winter. I brought towels for when we get out," he said. I nodded, now eager, before unbuttoning my top.

Damon POV

I averted my eyes when she was unbuttoning her top, even though I'd see her in her bathing suit anyway, because I thought she'd like it. Also, if I was being honest with myself, it would keep me from attacking her. I pulled my T-shirt off to find her wading in, ankles deep, skirt and top discarded, looking like a goddess or an angel or some other inhumanly beautiful creature. She gestured for me to join her, which I did with promptness. In fact, I was a little too fast, splashing water on her, not that she seemed to mind. She put her hands on my forearms and kissed me before sliding her arms lightly along my lower arm to my hands, which she used to tug me into the spring. She let out a short laugh before kissing me again, now chest deep in the water. She'd put her hair up during dinner and now it hung in a loose ponytail. Our hands were entwined underwater, but she released mine to let hers travel up my chest.

I pointedly deepened the kiss, pulling her up against me, and to my pleasure she wrapped her arms around my neck as far as she could, pulling her up to equal height to get a better angle. My hands were hesitant to roam too far, fearing she'd pull away, but steadily they caressed the skin along her back, stomach, and shoulders. I took one of her thighs gently in hand and she took the hint to wrap both her legs around my hips. She pulled away without warning and laid her head on my bare chest. I began apologizing but she just shushed me. "It's not you Damon, it's just, unlike _some_ very lucky people, I need to breathe," she panted.

I blinked and laughed. "I didn't realize I had that effect on you," I teased.

"Yes you did, arrogant vampire," she hissed, climbing down from me, but continuing to lean her head on my chest as her breathing slowed. I laughed and kissed the top of her head. I took her hands in mine and began swaying. "What are you doing?" she asked, looking up at me.

"Dancing with you,"

"Chest deep in water. With no music. My god, you're as insane as I am," she laughed, pulling one of her hands to set it on my shoulder while I moved mine to her bare waist.

"Then I suppose we make a pretty good pair," I said, leaning close to her.

"I suppose we do," she replied with a suave smile. Then grabbing my hand and shoulder she knocked my feet out from under me and we both fell into the water. I came up with just a flicker of amusement and surprise, but she came up laughing. "This is awesome. Thank you for this," she said, her soaking wet body against mine.

"Anything for you," I said with a smile. She looked up at the now starry night.

"As beautiful as this is, we should probably go home now," she said.

"We can always come back. Do you want me to stay with you again?" I asked, hoping the answer was yes.

"I think I'd rather stay with you tonight," she said, looking straight up at the stars. I grinned. Even better.


	10. Chapter 10

Jewel POV

I stirred slowly and rose drowsily to find Damon passed out at the other side of the bed. I smiled slightly and began stepping from the bed when a frantic knock rang out from the door. Damon sat up, immediately awake, as I stared confusedly at the door. "Come in,"

"Stefan is _gone_," sobbed a crazed Elena, covering her reddened face with her hands as she gulped air.

"What do you mean he's gone?" Damon demanded grumpily as I raced to Elena. She let me support her almost completely as her knees gave out. We stumbled to the end of the bed and she handed Damon a piece of paper. He read it several times, growling, before showing it to me. In Stefan's script was written

Elena,

Have joined Klaus. Don't follow me. This is for your own good.

Stefan

"What the hell does that mean?" shouted Damon, "And why would he go with the vamp trying to kill his girlfriend?"

"I don't know, but we're going to find him. It's going to be okay, Elena. Damon, call Bonnie and Caroline. Please," I said, rubbing Elena's back firmly and cradling her head on my shoulder. Damon leapt for the phone; he obviously had no idea how to deal with tears.

Bonnie and Caroline were there in an instant, rushing in to take my place so I could help Damon. "What are we going to do?" I whispered hoarsely once we were safely out of the room. I knew Stefan had left to protect Elena, but I didn't know how she'd live without him. I noted that Caroline and Bonnie were herding Elena downstairs.

"We're going to find him," decided Damon. "I'm going to make a few calls. Pack one of my bags," he murmured absentmindedly "Pack for a week, at least," he said. I did as he'd asked, making sure that he had something for any occasion, as well as vervain and a few weapons Katherine had left. I didn't like this at all. Damon came in his bedroom door with a ferocity that made me jump. "Alaric is coming to watch Elena until I get back. Don't let her do anything stupid," he growled. Then, for a moment, something softer flickered across his face. "I'll… see you when I get back. Just stay here and you should be safe. Don't leave the house," he warned, kissing my forehead.

"Hey!" I whispered, pulling him back to me and wrapping my arms around his waist before I kissed him. We stood like that for a few moments, clinging to the illusion that everything would stay the same if we didn't move. "Come back safe," I plead. He nodded before I released him and he was gone.

I went downstairs, where Elena had collapsed in a chair in the library. Bonnie was trying to make her drink some tea. "Hey," I said softly, prompting them all to look up at me, as though I had some answer to this madness. "It's going to be okay. Damon is going to search for Stefan, and Alaric is coming to help out," I hesitated. "It's going to be okay. We'll get him back, Elena," I said, this time with more authority.

Among all the craziness that naturally came in the next few days, Damon was my primary worry. He took to answering his phone less and less, so that by the fifth day I worried that he wouldn't come home at all.

I tapped the silver cover of my cell phone, toying with the idea of calling him. I flipped open the cover and dialed his number before I could change my mind, heart pounding in my ears. I licked my lower lip nervously.

"Hello?" asked a voice I knew well.

"Damon?" I asked. Chastising myself for such a stupid question, I announced myself. "It's Jewel. How're you doing?"

"I'm… It's not… God. I just need to be home. I'm coming home. I'll see you tomorrow. I'll probably be coming in late tonight, but I won't wake you up. I've got to go. Don't tell Elena, I can't talk to her right now, all right?" He asked, aged a hundred years in the past few days.

"Of course. I'll see you then," I said, my voice cracking with worry. He sighed and ended the call without another word.

My hands shook as I sank to the floor. Was Stefan dead? Or worse? What had Klaus done, and why had Stefan left?

I couldn't go down for dinner. Instead I sat on Damon's bed, wondering. It was the wondering that was the worst, I thought. If I knew then it would be final, but letting my thoughts wander like this was torture. Alaric came in around midnight to wish me goodnight and Katherine came half an hour past that. They were so good, such good friends. I really didn't deserve them. I wasn't being of any use to anyone.

Finally, right when I thought my heart was going to stop, a noise outside the door made me jump. I sat erect, barely daring to hope, before Damon came in.

He didn't look good. He needed to shave, he hadn't slept in a while, and if it was possible he seemed thinner. But it didn't matter; he was here, and he was safe.

I threw myself into his arms and kissed his face. Burying my face into his neck I realized that he had picked me up and was carrying me to bed. "What happened. Why didn't you want to talk to Elena?" I asked but he just shook his head.

"I'll tell you in the morning," he said, stroking my cheekbone. I smiled at him weakly.

"It's going to be okay. Damon, whatever it is, it will all be okay," I said, repeating the words that I didn't know to be true. They'd become my anthem, lately. He nodded at me. "You look exhausted. You need sleep. C'mon," I said, pulling him down with me.

He settled beside me and I smiled when I realized that he was already asleep. I stroked his mussed hair and the back of his neck with one hand and his arm with the other until I, too, drifted off.


	11. Chapter 11

(Song is Underneath Your Clothes by Shakira)

Damon POV

I was watching her sleep. At first it had seemed a little creepy, but after a while I started to enjoy it. After the week I'd had, a little bit of peace and beauty was just what the doctor ordered. She stirred. "Mmm. Hey," she smiled serenely, snuggling into my chest. I wrapped my arm around her and she moved her hand to grasp mine above her head, meeting her lips with mine in a quick peck before settling back against my chest. "Want me to get you some breakfast?" she asked lazily.

"No,"

"Want to tell me about Stefan?"

I sighed. "No. But I have to, Jewel, and I'm sorry," I murmured, kissing her beautiful wavy hair. It wasn't brushed yet, completely natural and tossed. I took a short breath before I began to explain. "Do you know what a reaper is?" I asked. She nodded. "Stefan used to be one, but you met the new Stefan. The boring one. There's no in-between with my brother," I grumbled. She chuckled. I looked up at the ceiling. "And now he's a reaper again. He and Klaus have been killing people up and down the East coast,"

She stiffened and sat up, leaning on her arm. "He can't be. He wouldn't do that," she said firmly, as though the bodies I'd found were some theory. I wished they could be, but it was definitely Stefan. The way they'd been put back together… it was Stefan, no doubt.

"Jewel, I know we thought he left to protect Elena and get Klaus away from her, but maybe he just couldn't be the boring Stefan anymore," I said. She frowned, processing. I knew how she felt; I may have pretended to hate him, but I did love Stefan, and it hurt to think that he had become the old one. Especially because it would kill Elena.

"I understand what you're saying, but we both know that he wouldn't do that. Damon, honey, it must be something else. I'll go tell Alaric so he can tell Elena," she said as she left the room. I fell back into the pillows. I wished I could just take Jewel and run to some Caribbean island where none of these problems existed. When she got back she bounced onto the bed as though she hadn't just heard that one of her friends was murdering people. "We're going to the beach," she announced. She was crazy.

"Sorry, Jewel, but we have other things to worry about," I reminded her.

"Which is why we're going. I know you, Damon, and you're a mess right now, and I won't have it," she said, grabbing my hand and pulling me up. I smiled at her. "Go shower and get ready and I'll meet you in half an hour," she said, walking out of the room. I shook my head at her before following her orders. Most of my clothes were dirty so I threw on some jeans and a T-shirt. Jewel came in while I was drying my hair. I was almost ready, but I hadn't put on my shirt yet. Jewel apparently didn't notice.

Jewel POV

I noticed. Oh, how I noticed. But I ignored. That was, apparently, the key difference between me and whoever else Damon had dated. "You ready?" I asked. Once I'd showered I'd thrown on a hot rod red bikini and denim booty shorts, so it rather pleased me that it took him a couple moments to answer.

"Yeah. Yeah, um, just let me grab my keys,"

I smiled. "Elena has moved back into her house, but Alaric went with her. I told him, so he's going to break it to her gently. C'mon, put your shirt on,"

It was a beautiful day, with a clear blue sky and heat that fell on you like a cozy blanket. I had some bright red hair bands in case it was windy by the ocean, but I doubted it would be. I'd also grabbed a belly shirt on the way out, as an afterthought, but somehow I doubted I'd be using it. Damon's eyes trailed after me wherever I went and I loved the newfound power.

His Chevy drove along speedily. I let down the window and felt the warm air flow through my fingers, grinning when I noticed Damon watching me. The radio was playing, but the radio station didn't have any consistency in the songs it played, which struck me as peculiar. It seemed to be the kind of station that played songs people called in.

"How much longer until we're there?" I asked absentmindedly.

"Half an hour, give or take. You were right. This is good," he said, leaning back in his seat and looking over at me. I grinned.

"Told you so," I laughed.

"Have you heard from Katherine?" he asked absentmindedly.

"Not for a while. She called once while you were gone. Shocked to hear about Stefan, set herself up temporarily in Detroit, et cetera. Take this exit," I changed the topic. My phone rang loudly. "Speak of the devil," I laughed, picking up the phone. "Hey, Kat. Really? Okay. Sure. Bye," Turning to Damon I rolled my eyes. "Detroit's not glamorous enough for her, so she's off to Chicago," I grumbled, earning a chuckle.

When we got to the nearly empty beach front Damon opened my car door for me, earning a smile. I grabbed my belly shirt but and stepped into the magnificent heat.

Damon POV

She wasn't as thin as a model, but that was part of the appeal. She was fit, definitely, but she was real, not airbrushed. She was real and she was here.

She smiled and stepped from the car, barefoot, onto the sand. Grabbing my hand she bounced on her heels and pulled me to the water. Her toes neatly dodged the foamy waves, playing a game that I could barely follow because there didn't appear to be any rules. She giggled.

"It's so pretty out here," she said, looking at me and gesturing to the ocean in front of us.

"Yeah," I agreed, not even bothering to look towards the waves. They couldn't come even close to matching her.

She walked a few paces back from the water and collapsed, watching the waves. She knelt in the sand, gesturing for me to join her. I couldn't help myself.

I knelt in front of her and kissed her, pushing her back a little for optimal angling. She giggled. "Best day ever," she said, resting her hands on my neck and arm. I grinned. She was right; today the sun was shining, the waves were rolling, and Stefan just had to wait. She was a genius for thinking of this.

"I'm going to get the drinks," I said, climbing to my feet and heading to the car. I'd packed a cooler with some sodas and sandwiches, in case we got hungry and there weren't any restaurants nearby. When I turned back I saw Jewel lying down, presumably enjoying the sunshine and tanning. I crept up on her and bent over her face, kissing her nose and then her lips. She smiled widely.

"Hey babe," My phone rang but I hit the ignore button and lay down next to her. "What if that was important?"

"Wasn't more important than this," I said, laying back in the sand and passing her a cold Diet Coke. She grinned and popped it open, propping herself up on one elbow to take a drink.

"That's what I like to hear," she said. Settling her drink in the sand she rolled on top of me and melded our lips. Unbelievable.

We spent the day surrounded by sunshine and each other. When she began to get pink I reluctantly had her put on her belly shirt, which wasn't too bad, considering. Driving home I had the radio on, although the night was too cold to keep the windows down. We'd been lucky to sneak in such a blissfully warm day, but fall was fast approaching. When I pulled up to the house it was with regret that our day had ended.

"You'll sleep in my room tonight?" asked Jewel with a silly sort of anxiety, as though I might turn her down.

"Of course. Just let me take a shower," I said. She nodded.

"I need one too," she murmured distractedly, opening the door and heading inside while I got the cooler. When I'd showered and changed into a black T-shirt and black pajama pants. I was about to open Jewel's door when I realized that she was playing music and singing along. This was too good to pass up. I silently opened the door and saw that she was in the bathroom, so she wouldn't see me come in. I stealthily crept in and leaned against the door, waiting for her to come in.

"Underneath your clothes there's an endless story, there's the man I chose, there's my territory, and all the things I deserve for being such a good girl, honey. Because of you, I forgot the smart way's to lie, because of you, I'm running out of reasons to cry. When the friends are gone, when the party's over, we'll still belong to each other," she sang quietly. I heard her feet patting the tile, coming closer. I counted the seconds until she entered the room, but I didn't have long to wait as the CD continued to climb the notes in the background.

Jewel POV

I froze as I realized that Damon was already here. He had to have heard me singing to that song while I got dressed. Well, this was humiliating.

"Um. Hi," I stammered slightly. He grinned, but didn't say anything. My mortification began to merge with slight frustration. "What?" I asked, certain that I had forgotten some aspect of my outfit. I glanced down. Nope, all was intact. "Am I missing something?" he shook his head, but pushed off the wall and took my face in his hands, kissing me passionately. He wrapped his hands in my hair, but I only smiled and pushed him off.

He glared at me as I opened the door to let the cat in. "What?" he demanded. "Why are you… I mean, I thought you liked it," he said confusedly. I smiled.

"I do, Damon, but I'm tired. C'mon. I'm imagine we'll have to face Elena tomorrow," I said, wrapping my small hand around his large one and drawing him closer to the bed. My damp hair clung to my face and I wished that I'd dried it more thoroughly. He stiffened.

"I think we'll have to face Elena sooner than that," he sighed. Soon I heard it too, the engine of a car. "I'll go talk to her," he said. I nodded as I saw the car pull in.

"So nice of him to leave us alone like this," came an easily recognizable voice. My heart stopped and I spun around.


	12. Chapter 12

Jewel POV

"Stefan?" I whispered "What are you doing here? Did you come back? You have to see Elena. She's downstairs," I said, trying to grab at his wrist to take him to her but he dodged me and shook his head.

"No, she's not," he said. I looked at him blankly for a moment before realization sank in.

"Damon!" I cried, praying he wasn't in danger. Stefan smirked and for the first time I decided that Damon was right; there was a side to him that I didn't know, and didn't like.

"He's not in any danger. I can't say the same for you, however, Jewel," he hissed. Before I could respond a sharp pain erupted in my head and I fell backwards into the floor, black fading all around me.

Damon POV

As I opened the front door I was shocked to see that it had been my car, masked by darkness, that had been driven into the driveway. That didn't make any sense. Further inspection proved that it hadn't been hotwired, but the only other person who had keys was Stefan.

Stefan. My heart sank and I raced upstairs only to find that I was too late. I whipped out my cell phone to call Alaric.

Stefan POV

It was a shame. Horrible. I liked Jewel, and I loved my brother, who obviously loved Jewel. I just couldn't see any way around it. For my brother to live, Jewel had to die or join us, and there was no way Jewel was going to join us.

But, still. She was sweet and good-natured. This wasn't some random stranger who I could convince myself wasn't worthy of living, this was my friend. But I couldn't see any way around it, and my brother had to live…

Jewel POV

Gradually the black went away and I remembered what had happened. I moaned as my entire body gained an aching sensation. I was lying down somewhere, and when I sat up and opened my eyes I could see that I was in a cage. Slowly I checked myself out. I seemed to be unharmed except for a large sore spot, presumably a bruise, above my right eye.

"Stefan? Anybody?" I whispered hoarsely, terrified of either getting a response or not getting one.

"Hello, pet," said a handsome British man.

"H-hi. My name's Jewel. You must be Klaus," I whispered, reaching up to try and calm the pounding headache I had.

"Ah, that. Yes, quite a nasty bruise. I imagine it hurt to get it," he said, toying with her like a cat with a mouse.

"I could cover it with makeup," said a pretty blonde vampire nearby. I smiled hesitantly at her; she seemed nicer than Klaus.

"Don't bother. I can't imagine I'm leaving here, if you plan to let me leave at all, without more bruises," I murmured.

"You're very smart. I can see why Stefan is so attached to you. No, we don't plan to let you leave," said Klaus, looking her over.

"Stefan isn't attached to me. If he was, he wouldn't have done this. Where am I?" I asked. If I was going to die, might as well know where.

"Brazen, too. You're in a truck. I, as you inferred, am Klaus and this is my sister. Stefan is driving, at the moment, so you won't see him until we stop," he snarled lightly. I glared at him.

"You don't look like a killer. Except for your eyes. Otherwise you look… normal. A little too handsome to be human, perhaps, and of a rather old-fashioned build, but normal," I pondered aloud. He smirked amusedly at me, but his sister looked at me with a sort of respect, though I knew it was the kind of respect an employer has for a hard-working subordinate.

"That's what they all think, I imagine. Handsome, but normal. Ha. You're rather a bright one. I do hope you'll join us; it's so dreadful when people like you are wasted. What do you think of me?" she asked, apparently pointlessly filling the silence.

"You don't look normal at all. Much more grandeur about you. Majestic, always going to be above the rest of us just by the way you carry yourself. Not enough to directly separate you, just right for what you do here, I think," I said, leaning back against the bars of the cage. She smiled.

"Is that so? What do you think we do?" she said and we fell into an awkward version of conversation.

Damon POV

"I don't CARE! We have to find her, NOW!" I shouted. Didn't they understand that she was in danger? Didn't they care that I needed her?

"I get that, Damon, but we don't know where they are or how to get to them," Alaric intoned. I paced, running my hand through my hair angrily before I turned over a table. Alaric didn't even flinch but Caroline drew her knees around her and Bonnie scooted a little closer to the bulky history teacher. Ha. Like he could protect her.

"Damon, we're going to find her, we just need time," began Bonnie, but I cut her off.

"Time? She hasn't _got_ time, Bonnie! I saw those people, and if Stefan hasn't already killed her, he will. Soon,"


	13. Chapter 13

(Thanks for all the reviews, especially to Starlight Moonlight for clarifying that it's ripper, not reaper)

Damon POV

Ten hours. Ten _hours_ had passed and we still didn't know where she was. Was she even still alive? A huge smash interrupted my thoughts. I left the library and my liquor to see Katherine walking past our broken hall table. "They're in Chicago. Son of a… I was trying to talk him into coming back, and then he was gone, and now she is!" she said, anger meshing with terror and misery. I would have berated her for meeting Stefan, presumably by chance, and not telling us, but even I could see she couldn't take it right now. "Do you think it could be related to her parents?" she begged.

I shrugged. "She never told me about them. Come into the library and let's talk," I said, texting Alaric that he'd been in Chicago. It drove me nuts, but they weren't really keeping me in the loop. They said I might hurt someone. They were right, but did it matter right now?

"Well, I mean, she should probably be the one to tell you, but I don't even know if she's okay! What if something happened to her, Damon?" She said, a few stray tears falling from her eyes for the first time. I didn't answer; I didn't need to. "I don't think it's related at all. Just a silly little whim. But we need to find her," she said decisively, sitting up straighter and pulling out her cell phone and a list of names and phone numbers. "We should call these people. You start with 'O' and I'll end with 'N'," she said, handing me the lower half of the sheet.

The few hours we spent didn't get us much information, but we gathered that they were in a truck of some kind. I knew their MO from the murders, however, and there had been a murder in Memphis that was exactly their style. I called Alaric and within an hour he, Katherine and I were on our way. We managed to talk Caroline and Bonnie into keeping Elena from leaving the house and making sure nothing got to her about our mission. No need to get her involved in this.

Although we sped on all the roads, it still took us nine hours to get to Memphis and the yokels that lived there had absolutely no information for us. Alaric tried to insist to that it wasn't their fault because Stefan and Klaus were professionals, but Katherine and I were having none of it. All the local truck stop could tell us was that one truck matching our description had stopped by at the stated time, and that the very nice British man driving it had taken off in the direction of Jackson.

"Jackson doesn't make sense, but there's a wildlife refuge on the way to Jackson. They like the woods," suggested Katherine.

"It would be good for hiding a body," joined in Alaric absentmindedly before realizing what he'd said. "I mean, a human body that they'd picked up somewhere, you know, not anyone we know or anything," He stammered, hammering the notion into my stomach. I was beginning to feel sick. It took 50 minutes with our adjusted speed limits, but we struck a problem when we got there. Even with the help of rangers, it was 23.5 miles of wilderness. How were we going to find them?

Jewel POV

It was still light out, but it was going to be dark soon. I was being led through the woods, hands tied behind my back, to some sort of campsite. "This isn't really a camp, you understand, so much as a hunting park. A runaway like you might have wandered into it thinking otherwise, though. Sad little hunting accident," taunted Klaus. I glared at him as he tossed me into a tree, scraping the rough bark against the bare skin of my arm. I could feel the blood from the stinging wound, but I was focused on what he'd said; I didn't have much time, I presumed. "Stefan, watch the girl. I think I want something to eat," he said nastily, gesturing to the terrified girl they'd kidnapped. She looked about nineteen. I wished I could help her.

"Leave her alone!" I cried, struggling against the ropes that burned my wrists. Klaus laughed.

"Feisty, aren't you," he said, before stroking the cheek of the quivering teen and dragging her to the truck.

"Why are you doing this, Stefan? You love Elena, I know you do, please don't do this to her and Damon!" I begged. I knew he'd be upset at my kidnapping, furious at his brother, and odious at the world. I didn't know how much more the poor man could take. Stefan looked like he wanted to say something, but instead he just sat down on a stump and watched me. I sighed and leaned my head against the tree. He growled angrily, running his hand through his hair, before he disappeared into the truck. I could hear yelling, but I couldn't make out what they were saying.

Stefan POV

She was right. I wasn't just hurting her, it would kill my brother and Elena. They were her friends. I couldn't do this; I wouldn't. Walking to the truck, I interrupted Klaus.

Damon POV

We were walking among the giant trees and wildlife when I heard something behind me. Turning around I saw Stefan. Holding an unconscious, bleeding Jewel by the neck. I growled, but Alaric held me back before I could kill him. "I told you not to follow me," said Stefan, smirking before he tossed Jewel at me. I caught her and held her, relief coursing through my veins. She was alive.

Jewel POV  
>He'd hit me, hadn't he? Across my face. That's all I could remember before the blackness came back. I was vaguely aware of a humming noise around me and of being warm, but it took me a moment to gather that I was in the backseat of a car with Damon and Katherine. "What happened?" I moaned quietly.<p>

I was leaning against Damon, who stiffened as I spoke, but Katherine just as quickly jumped to attention. "You were kidnapped, J. Do you remember anything?" asked Kat.

"They were going to kill me. But Stefan yelled at Klaus and they didn't. Told you he was still Stefan. How's Elena?"

"She's fine, Jewel, everyone's fine," barked Katherine.

Elena POV

Where were Damon and Alaric? Tyler was lying on the floor and Klaus was here with his horrible sister Rebecca and I didn't know what to do! Where could they have gone? If they didn't come back soon, Stefan was going to have to feed on me.

Jeremy POV

My damn phone had died but the car was still going. Katherine had sent me to find Michael and I was going to do it. It was going to help Elena; I didn't have a choice. Klaus may have stolen Jenna but he wasn't going to take my sister from me.

Damon POV

"Shit. Look at these texts. Klaus is in Mystic Falls. Go, Alaric, pick up the pace!" I shouted, glancing at my phone in horror. Jewel sat up quickly and winced.

"What? How did… no, they were just in Tennessee? How long has it been since…?"

"We're almost back in Mystic Falls. If they ran and just had some human drive their stupid truck or whatever, they'd have been here for an hour, maybe two. God, how did we not see this coming?" I berated myself.

Jewel POV

Alaric went so fast that it only took a few minutes to get to the school, but those minutes ticked by so slowly that I felt a lifetime had passed. Damon was sitting up right. When we pulled up to the school Alaric ran in but Bonnie came running out. "She's at the hospital. Hurry!" she shouted and before I could move Damon was in the car seat and the town was passing in a blur.

When Damon leapt out of the car, I followed him, in spite of the fact that Katherine grabbed at my wrist. "Stay in the car," I called behind me. Damon turned around in surprise.

"You're not coming!" he yelled. I shook my head.

"Yes I am. Where is he?"

"Here I am, love," said the charming British voice. I spun around. He had the audacity to laugh, although I suppose he had every right to. "Now, I promised that I wouldn't hurt you or your boyfriend. But I doubt Stefan cares anymore," he snarled and lunged at Damon, who pushed him off.

"Stay away from them," I growled.

Katherine came out of the car then, walking like royalty. "Remember Michael?" she purred. Klaus froze. "Oh, so you _do?_ How nice. He'll be really pleased to know that when he gets here," she said, and like magic Klaus disappeared.

Damon ran inside and came out again with a drowsy Elena. We settled her into the car and called Bonnie, who filled us in on the horrors of the night. She, Caroline, and Tyler were clearing out the bodies and making it look like just another Senior prank night. I was too tired after this whole ordeal to bother with it. Elena got settled in the library with Damon while I cooked some pasta to feed her. She had apparently lost a lot of blood so she was going to need as much sustenance as she could get. Poor thing.

Damon came in behind me. "Stefan's back. Klaus sent him to watch. He turned himself off, Jewel, he's gone," he whispered, wrapping his arms around my hips.

I nodded, turning around to lay my head on his chest. "Joy," I whispered. I grabbed the plate of pasta and walked into the library. Handing it to Elena, I stroked her hair and gave her a smile, checking her pulse as my hand slid to her neck. Just as I was about to go to my room I stopped short. Damon had told me he was back, but it was still a shock. I walked up to him and, gathering all my nerve, I kissed his stony cheek. "Thank you," I whispered, before spinning around and walking up the stairs where Damon was waiting for me. I ignored the tear that dripped down my cheek.


	14. Chapter 14

Jewel POV

My eyes fluttered open to see Damon sprawled across from me, still asleep. I smiled. I stroked his cheek lightly enough that it would tickle until he opened his eyes and stretched. "Morning," I whispered. He grinned at me. I pushed on his shoulder and rolled on top of him as he gave way, pressing myself against him and forcing his mouth open with mine. He mumbled something against my mouth as I took a breath. "Breakfast?" I offered and he growled slightly before he flipped me over. It was still pretty early in the morning and there was a nip in the air that encouraged us to stay in bed all day.

He trailed from my lips to my jaw to my neck to my collar bone and back, rubbing little circles on my belly with his thumbs. "I was worried about you," he whispered in my ear, "I thought you weren't coming back,"

"I'll always come back to you," I promised with a smile, pulling him back to my mouth. He was nothing if not avid. A screech pulled us from our activities and I rolled off the bed to investigate before he could stop me. Jogging from the room I stopped and nearly fainted at the sight of two young brunettes on the stairs. I took several steps back and Damon caught me. Carrying me back to his room he set me on the bed and looked me over.

"I'll be right back. Don't leave the room," he said, grabbing his phone. From the tone I could tell that he'd dialed Katherine, who had left during the night to deal with the vampire called Michael.

Sitting on the bed was boring and terrifying, wondering who had killed those poor girls and at the same time knowing. The door opened and I jumped back as I saw the blonde demon that had assisted, to a lesser extent, in my kidnapping. "Rebecca? What are you doing here?" I asked. She smiled.

"My idiot brother left me, so I'm camping with you. Do you know where a spare bedroom is?" she asked with a tone that clearly said she was in no mood to be messed with.

"Yeah, six doors down on the left," I muttered, pushing my hair back behind my ear.

"Get out," growled Damon pushing Rebecca out the door as she gasped. "How are you?" he asked, looking at me.

"I'm fine. I'll be fine. Did Stefan do that?" I asked. He nodded. I sighed. "I know you warned me, but I just thought he'd come back," I said.

"Mmm," he walked over and swept me up, wrapping his arms firmly around my waist. "It sounds like you need a distraction," he murmured, looking away towards his mirror at our reflection.

"If only I knew someone who could help me with that," I laughed, leaning back to look at him and tugging at the buttons on his shirt. We'd both gone to sleep in the clothes we were wearing yesterday. My arms snaked up his back, one latching onto his shoulder and the other securely knotted in his hair. Without warning I was pressed up against the wall. Laughing, I pushed my body further up the wall to look at him face to face, simultaneously tugging him closer. "I missed you," I whispered.

Damon POV

Her delicate face held something akin to love. Gently, I pressed my lips against hers and smiled against them when she attacked mine in return. I moved my arms from her back to her thighs and pressed her flat against the wall. "Damon!" she giggled as I kissed her neck.

"Shhh," I warned, stroking her thigh with my thumb and steadily digging my lips into her skin. Her taste intoxicated me.

"Damon," she moaned breathily, "We shouldn't," she protested, but her grip on my shoulder brought me even closer to her.

I brought my mouth to her ear, breathing heavily. "I love you," I whispered, bending my head to kiss her jaw.

She tossed her hair. "I love you too," she said, pressing her lips firmly against mine, pulling me into her. I tugged at the edge of her shirt, feeling her work at the buttons on mine. The skin hiding under her blouse warmed the tips of my fingers.

Jewel POV

His hands massaged my sides, working around to the small of my back before climbing back around front to play with the edge of my bra. Frustrated, I just ripped his damn shirt off. I heard him chuckling huskily. "Bed," I muttered, giving up the sense I'd been retaining in one word. He nodded.

"You sure?" he asked, looking me in the eye. I smiled and kissed him, propelling us in the direction of his massive four poster.


	15. Chapter 15

Jewel POV

I nuzzled his bare chest without opening my eyes, enjoying the feel of his skin and his hand brushing my hair. I painted shapes on the side of his neck lazily with one hand while the other looped around his back to hold him close. "Mmm. It's late. Your brother and Elena will be coming home soon," I mumbled.

"'Spose so,"

"I need a shower," I muttered. He stroked the small of my back lightly and a mischievous grin fell on his face.

"I'm in,"

"No, just me!" I giggled, rolling onto my stomach and laying my chin on my arms. "Where's my shirt?" I said, turning to survey the littered clothing.

"Foot of the bed. Why not?" he asked, lying back with his eyes closed "They do it in all your favorite girly romantic comedies.

"Yeah but you never see those girls actually showering, just making out and what not," I asked, pulling my shirt over my head, thankful that I'd at least kept my bra on. "Hmmm. Underwear?" I asked. He gestured to the floor next to my bed and I rolled to grab it. I tossed him his boxers while I was at it.

"Go get something to eat. I'm starving," I laughed as he opened one eye to survey me lazily. "I'll be in the shower," I called as I walked down the hall into my bathroom. I showered as quickly as I could and wrapped a towel around myself. I slipped into my underwear and a sweater dress before paying special attention to my hair. I jumped when a mew escaped from under my bed.

"What are you doing under there?" I asked, getting on my knees to look under it.

"Who's under your bed?" asked Damon, walking into the room. I climbed to my feet.

"The cat. Come out!" I coaxed teasingly. _I'm good here, thanks._ She purred out as she leapt at a cricket. I rolled my eyes. Damon passed me a bowl of pasta and a fork as I climbed onto the bed. "So, do we have any plans today?" I asked, nudging his knee playfully with my toe.

"I think we've already been pretty productive," he decided smoothly, evoking what I'm sure was a bright red blush.

"Knock knock," moaned Rebecca, entering the room. "I need something to do today. Jewel, you're taking me shopping,"

"Sounds good to me," declared Katherine cheerily. I rolled my eyes and smiled at them.

"If you're both so intent on shopping why don't you go without me?" I asked, stabbing a penne.

"She might stake me," stated Rebecca indignantly, crossing her arms.

"I might stake her," agreed Katherine, settling her hands on her hips. I groaned.

"Fine. Let me get ready," I said, shooing them out. I grabbed a pair of comfortable flats and pulled my hair into a ponytail. I was about to take my empty bowl to the kitchen sink when Damon grabbed it.

"I've got this. Enjoy your girl's night out," he said with a condescending grin.

"Jerk," I grumbled, kissing his cheek and grabbing my purse. Stumbling out the door I was grabbed by the two vampires. The car drive was mildly awkward, but Rebecca didn't seem to mind that she'd kidnapped me. Instead she talked as though she'd been the one gagged.

"Katherine, where are we going? That was the exit for the mall," I pointed behind us at the rapidly disappearing ramp.

"You're being kidnapped again. Only this time by me. We're taking you for a girl's weekend!"squealed Rebecca.

"What? No! Katherine, turn the car around! Damon is going to kill us!" I shouted, twisting in my seat to stare, horrified, at the perky blonde who was bouncing up and down in excitement.

"Relax. I left Damon a note in the kitchen," Katherine said, as though it was perfectly acceptable behavior.

"Katherine, he'll _freak_! God, what about Stefan? What are you _thinking_?" I gasped.

"That there is a fantastic spa with three reservations under our names. C'mon; don't you remember the days before you were tied down? When we would stay at lavish inns against your wishes and have _fun?_ Don't you miss that?" begged Katherine, turning away from the road to search my eyes. I sighed.

"Fine. I just hope Damon doesn't track us down. I'm tired of being kidnapped," I pouted. "Wait, I didn't pack!" I said, shooting up to look worriedly at Katherine. She smirked.

"You act like I don't plan _at all_!" Rebecca squealed in the backseat. "This is going to be so much fun! My idiot brother never let me do anything without him at all!"

We drove until early evening, when Katherine pulled into a modern, elaborately decorated driveway. In front of us was a white-washed resort, complete with a valet that took our car and a bellboy that delivered our bags to our room. Our rooms were another story; they were adjoined, mine in the middle with Rebecca on my left and Katherine on my right. Mine was decorated in earthy tones, which suited me perfectly. It had a bathroom bigger than my bedroom and a bath big enough to swim in. Katherine's room was properly deemed the royal suite; it was decorated like a modern palace in hues of purple and cream. Rebecca's was just as lavish. It was more of a mini-apartment, spacious and decorated in abstract, bold colors and shapes. She was obviously less old-fashioned than Katherine and I, apparently less aware of her age.

"Okay, first thing on the list, _dinner_. I'm starving. I say we order in; you won't believe the room service here," praised Katherine uncharacteristically as we settled into her living room. Yes; Katherine's room included a living room that looked out on the gardens and elevated pool. My bedroom looked out on it, but I'd decided to keep the chestnut curtains drawn.

"Then the spa?" asked Rebecca in the kind of way only a spoiled princess can ask something.

"Of course!" agreed Katherine, leaning back on her chaise. She tossed me a menu. Katherine ordered foie gras, Rebecca ordered pan-fried sea trout, and I ordered a vegetarian soup that I couldn't pronounce. I knew it was all on the up-and-up because I'd never heard of most of it.

Dinner was delicious (of course) and Katherine had very quickly booked us downstairs. Apparently she'd already compelled the concierge to do anything she wanted; convenient, if not ethical. We were getting something called the 'Restore Massage', which apparently combined a Swedish massage and aromatherapy for three times the price. Katherine insisted, however; she had never been one to be bothered by wastefulness. My phone rang and I answered it.

"I've been calling you," said Damon before I got the chance to answer.

"I'm sorry; I didn't hear the phone. Is everything all right?"

"You were supposed to be shopping and then I found this note from our beloved Katherine saying you wouldn't be back until Monday. No, everything isn't all right," he said stonily.

"I know, she practically kidnapped me, but it's really kind of sweet," I said, taking a quick look around to make sure she was hiding behind my curtains as I snook off into my own room. "She missed our old days together. And it's a very nice hotel. Resort. Thing. I'll be home soon," I assured. He sighed.

"Sweet. Only you would describe her as sweet. I've got to go; I'll see you Monday," he said, but he sounded better.

"Love you," I said and he replied before hanging up. I tossed the phone on the nightstand to charge and followed Katherine to the spa.


End file.
